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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/30012159">when you cry, darling, cry long and cry loud</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/soundofez/pseuds/soundofez'>soundofez</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Believe It (MaStar/Naruto AU) [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Soul Eater</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>(Franken Stein), (Maka Albarn/Black Star), (Shinigami-sama | Lord Death), (Spirit Albarn | Death Scythe), Alternate Universe - Naruto Fusion, Asexual Relationship, Gen, M/M, Slice of Life, Slow Burn, Soul Eater Resonance Bang, Team Bonding, ace boys unite!!!!</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 21:22:11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>37,855</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/30012159</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/soundofez/pseuds/soundofez</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Kid is the proud son of the leader of Tamashi. He knows his place in the world, and his obligations: he must be the cleverest and strongest person in the land so that he can carry on his father's work.</p><p>Soul is the disgraced son of a wealthy merchant family. He was never supposed to be a ninja. Then again, he never wanted to be a merchant, either.</p><p>Naruto AU. Slowburn, slice-of-life. Written for Resbang 2020.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Death the Kid/Soul Eater Evans, Maka Albarn &amp; Black Star &amp; Death the Kid, Soul Eater Evans &amp; Nakatsukasa Tsubaki &amp; Liz Thompson</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Believe It (MaStar/Naruto AU) [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1788238</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Soul Eater Resonance Bang 2020</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Age: 12. Rank: [N/A].</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>The context is I thought of this pairing on a whim while working on <em>Believe It!</em> and then it ate me alive. Here I am, spat out nine entire months later, gone fully soft for these boys. I love them and also everyone around them.</p><p>Even... yeah, even Spirit. I apologize in advance for Spirit.</p><p><a href="https://heliozi.tumblr.com/">@heliozi</a> was my artist this season! <a href="https://soundofez.tumblr.com/post/646150921644113920/">Your art is gorgeous and soft and must be seen</a>, and I'm so unbelievably glad to have worked with you ♥</p><p>All my love for the beta squad, who have stayed up with me through this last week and especially on this last day of madcap editing. All hail <a href="https://arialis.tumblr.com/">@arialis</a>, <a href="https://happyisahabit.tumblr.com/">@happyisahabit</a>, and <a href="https://nainakh.tumblr.com/">@nainakh</a>!</p><p><strong>Links:</strong> [<a href="https://resbangmod.tumblr.com/">event tumblr</a>] [<a href="https://soundofez.tumblr.com/post/646150921644113920/">heliozi's art</a>] [<a href="https://soundofez.tumblr.com/post/646146572779962368/">tumblr post</a>] [<a href="https://soundofez.tumblr.com/tagged/cry+darling">the tumblr tag</a>]</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A stern-looking man in a ninja's flak jacket stares down at Soul. The man's long bangs are combed over half of his face, covering one eye.</p><p>Soul is terrified. He has never been good around strangers. He's worse around ninja, even though he's been attending the Academy for a year now. Now that he's been caught in school after hours, he is absolutely certain that this man has a terrible scar under those bangs, and that he'll do something worse to Soul.</p><p>"Soul Evans?" says the ninja-stranger.</p><p>Soul ducks his head. He means to nod, but his eyes get stuck on the man's boots. They look well-worn, like the shoes of some of the Evans' servants, but less polished. His parents would never let this man through the front entrance of the family compound. After tonight, Soul doesn't think they'll let him through the front entrance, either.</p><p>"You're not in trouble," says the ninja-stranger.</p><p>That unsticks Soul's eyes. "I'm not expelled?" he blurts, looking up at the ninja.</p><p>The man's grim mouth twitches into a smirk. "No," he says. "The Tamashikage wouldn't want your bloodline going to waste."</p><p>The mention of the Tamashikage makes Soul relax. Something inside him relaxes, too, so that his foot finally turns back from sharp steel to regular flesh.</p><p>"However," says the ninja, "you will be taking your genin exam before you leave the building tonight."</p><p>Soul's leg tenses and turns to steel again.</p><p>The ninja ignores the transformations and the tiny puffs of smoke that go with them. "My name is Akane," he continues. "I will be your proctor, young master Evans."</p><p>"But the exam is tomorrow," says Soul. "I'm not ready. I haven't studied."</p><p>Mr. Akane's smirk widens, terrifying Soul all over again. "I don't think you'll have to worry about that," he says. There's a click and a whirr, and then he sets a tape recorder on the desk between them.</p>
<hr/><p>At twenty-two years of age, Clay Sizemore is as easy-going as his AB blood typing suggests.<sup><a href="#1n" id="1t" name="1t">[1]</a></sup> He went easily to his teaching post at the Academy, and has been well-received by its students for the past year. He lives with the other remaining member of his original genin team, an Akane Hoshi, also twenty-two, also male. Clay does not belong to a clan; his roommate belongs to a dying one.</p><p>Kid knows all this because he has read the files. He also knows that he should not be allowed to re-take the genin test after failing it yesterday.</p><p>"Why not?" Mr. Sizemore asks. He looks honestly confused.</p><p>"No one else is," says Kid. "I shouldn't get special treatment just because I'm the Tamashikage's son."</p><p>Mr. Sizemore smiles. "You aren't the only one," he says.</p><p>Kid's scowl digs deeper into his brow. "There have never been genin re-assessments before," he says. "The rules shouldn't change just because of me."</p><p>"Or," says Mr. Sizemore, "they were flawed to begin with and are now being corrected because you have brought attention to those flaws."</p><p>"The rules shouldn't change just because of me," Kid repeats.</p><p>"Then who should they change for?" Mr. Sizemore asks.</p><p>Kid shrugs. "Someone else."</p><p>"Who <em>would</em> they change for?" Mr. Sizemore amends.</p><p>Kid sulks.</p><p>Mr. Sizemore does not press the issue. Instead, he tidies his papers and readies a finger over the tape recorder. "Are you ready to begin?"</p>
<hr/><p>Mr. Akane ends the recording. "Congrats on graduating from the Academy," he says, tucking the exam papers into a folder. "You don't need to come in tomorrow."</p><p>Soul startles. "What about the practical section?"</p><p>Mr. Akane snorts. "You passed that when you fully transformed into a scythe."</p><p>Soul's jaw drops. "What? But that was when I, um."</p><p>There's a quiet gleam in Mr. Akane's exposed eye. "You're not the first student to ever try to steal the written exam," he says, "but you're the first to ever pass another portion in the attempt." He pauses. "Why <em>did</em> you try to steal the answers? We thought Black Star might, but we didn't expect you."</p><p>Soul feels his ears heat. "N-no reason," he mumbles. </p><p>"There's always a reason, master Evans."</p><p>Something sharp and steel stirs in Soul's chakra. Soul hopes it doesn't turn him into a scythe again. One panicky transformation was enough for a lifetime. He really doesn't want it to happen twice in the same night. At least if it does this time, he won't be trying to run from the teachers guarding the exam papers. "It's stupid," he mutters. "I thought it would be cool."</p><p>Mr. Akane doesn't laugh, which is a relief, because if he had, Soul definitely would have transformed again.</p>
<hr/><p>"And finally: blood is to body as chakra is to…?"</p><p>"Soul," Kid replies. "But that implies that blood can be controlled. Which it can, but only through chakra anyway."</p><p>Mr. Sizemore is still wearing that benign smile he's had all evening. "Is that so?"</p><p>"It's illegal, anyway," says Kid. "Researching blood control. Researching bloodlines in general, actually, but that's because the clans don't like it when outsiders pry. Blood control is considered unethical, though." Mr. Sizemore nods along, but Kid can tell he isn't really listening. "That was the last question?" he adds.</p><p>"It was." Mr. Sizemore hits a button on the tape recorder, which clicks and stops whirring. "Congratulations on passing the genin exams." He beams at Kid. "Your team assignment will be sent out next week."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p><a href="#1t" id="1n" name="1n">[1]</a> AB blood typing - in Eastern countries, blood types are considered a personality indicator, similar to zodiac signs, and would be present on any profiles.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Age: 13. Rank: D.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Sometimes, Kid's father makes decisions that Kid cannot understand.</p><p>The recommissioning of Captain Franken Stein is one of them. The Suture Ninja was young when he retired from service. It was a mark of how much he had accomplished: graduating from the Academy at age six, jumping from genin to chuunin to jounin rank by age thirteen. He served for another thirteen years before retiring, and barely got to enjoy it before being pulled back into service to captain a genin squad. Now, at age twenty-six, he is still the youngest captain in the history of the village. On top of that, he's been assigned <em>Kid</em>, who is a valued Academy graduate by virtue of being the Tamashikage's son, despite the fact that he'd initially failed the written portion.</p><p>Kid is horribly, horribly envious. He wishes he were so accomplished, but he hadn't even realized he could graduate early until about three years ago, and by then the early-graduation track had closed. He can only comfort himself with the thought that at least this way, he <em>knows</em> he's not being given special treatment.</p><p>At least, not <em>that </em>much special treatment. He's still bitter about the circumstances under which he'd graduated. Given that he'd fainted under the slight pressure of a written exam, he's adamant that he shouldn't have graduated at all.</p><p>The setting sun casts long shadows across the sand-covered training grounds and throws the features of Kid's teammates in stark contrasts. Kid inspects them. He recognizes Maka Albarn by her family name and the simple, maroon crest of her clan. The Albarns, he knows, specialize in genjutsu, a branch of ninja technique which relies on illusions and eye contact. Also, Maka's father is one of his father's closest advisors. As a teammate for Kid, she makes sense. As a student for Captain Stein, she also makes sense: Captain Stein may not be privy to the specifics of Maka's bloodline or the <em>Juuji-sen</em>'s<sup><a href="#2n" id="2t" name="2t">[2]</a></sup> capabilities, but he does have some affinity for genjutsu and therefore knows how to train the skill.</p><p>Kid turns his attention to his other teammate. Black Star… makes less sense. Black Star is an orphan from a dying clan (the same clan as Akane Hoshi's). He has no ties to either Kid or Maka, and is something of a social pariah for his loudness and rudeness, as well as for his parents' lingering infamy. Moreover, Black Star demands patience, and Captain Stein is not a patient man.</p><p>Captain Stein seems to draw the same conclusions as Kid, because Black Star has barely begun his (loud) introduction before the captain cuts him off.</p><p>"I've decided I don't want to train you," Captain Stein announces bluntly. His eyes slide lazily from Black Star, frozen in confusion; to Maka Albarn, standing primly at attention; to Kid. "Not any of you."</p><p>Maka looks offended. Black Star resumes yelling.</p><p>"I'll teach one of you," the captain continues, ignoring Black Star and instead pulling a single bell out of his pocket. "Whoever holds this bell at sun-up will be my student."</p><p>Black Star lunges before Captain Stein is even done speaking. The captain redirects him with his free hand.</p><p>"Pitiful," he tells the boy. "I didn't even have to move. In fact, I don't think I will." He dodges another swing from Black Star, prods the boy's side, and watches his victim topple to the ground, clutching at his gut.</p><p>Maka is quiet. Kid glances at her and finds her eyes glassy and vacant. Genjutsu. She topples almost as soon as he notices.</p><p>He catches her and sets her on the ground. When she screams, he nearly jumps out of his skin.</p><p>It's a long scream. Black Star drags himself upright and scrambles to her side. "Maka!"</p><p>His voice snaps her out of whatever genjutsu had caught her. She stops screaming with a gasping shudder as Black Star whirls on Kid.</p><p>"What did you do to Maka?" he snarls.</p><p>Captain Stein answers. "Nothing much," he says calmly. Black Star's head snaps around to glare at the man, who only adds, "Would you like to try?"</p><p>That sets Black Star off again. Kid watches Captain Stein trip the boy and send him face-first into the loose sand.</p><p>Maka laughs. Her voice is hoarse.</p><p>"Are you all right?" Kid asks.</p><p>She looks up at him. "I— I'm fine."</p><p>"He used genjutsu on you," Kid says. "That wasn't fair."</p><p>Maka shrugs. "I used it on him first."</p><p>Kid glares at Captain Stein, who is jingling the bell thoughtfully. He looks <em>bored</em>. Of course he does, Kid thinks irately. He is a genius-level jounin; an entire class of freshly-graduated genin could never stand a chance. Fighting three is child's play.</p><p>Captain Stein is toying with them, making Maka and Black Star feel like they have a chance. When the sun rises, though, he'll pick Kid.</p><p>Cold rage floods through Kid's body. If the captain thinks Kid will accept that, he has something else coming.</p><p>Kid's hands move automatically into the seals that will direct his chakra. Around him, he can sense the flow of other chakra: of Maka, still sat on the ground beside him, shaky and uncertain; of Captain Stein, standing before him, flexible as steel wire; of Black Star, just on the other side of the captain, struggling out of the sand, sparking with indignation.</p><p>Kid forms the final seal. He aims— sand ripples around his chakra— Stein, unbalanced, drops to one knee— and Kid releases a spike of sand.</p><p>Captain Stein avoids the attack so easily that he leaves the strap of the bell looped around the end of the spike.</p><p>"Are you sure you're qualified to be our teacher?" Kid demands.</p><p>Captain Stein grins. "Congratulations on the win, little Death."</p><p>Kid shakes his head. He can barely find words for how <em>angry</em> he is. "I don't have the bell yet," he finally spits. "And you <em>let</em> me take it, anyway. That's cheating." He wants to say more, about how he wants a <em>fair</em> fight, about how he would rather work with Maka and, yes, <em>Black Star</em>, than get stuck alone with Captain Stein for a mentor— but the sand is still rippling, and his vision blurs.</p><p>Oh. He's used too much chakra.</p><p><em>Do not pass out,</em> he tells himself.</p><p>It doesn't work. It never does. He doesn't even feel his knees hit the ground.</p>
<hr/><p>Soul has never felt like he fits, not at home and not at the Academy. He'd dared to hope that when he graduated, he would finally fit in with his teammates.</p><p>He does not fit in with his teammates.</p><p>"I thought you died," one says bluntly. She is a girl, taller than Soul, with long dirty-blonde hair that catches the late afternoon sunlight and makes Soul have to squint. Her eyes are a blue that is every bit as cold as Soul's parents'.</p><p>His other teammate gasps softly. She is even taller than the blonde girl, though her hair is black; both of them together make Soul feel small.</p><p>Soul is pathetically grateful that she isn't laughing at him, too. </p><p>"What?" says the first girl. "It's true, isn't it? You tried to steal the genin exams and Mr. Sizemore cut you in half with a scythe."</p><p>Soul's ears are burning. None of his classmates ever knew about his penchant for turning into steel, and he doesn't want them to find out now. He manages a one-shouldered shrug and mutters, "I can't be here if I'm dead."</p><p>"But you <em>did</em> try to steal the exam," she presses. "How come they let you pass?"</p><p><em>The Tamashikage wouldn't want your bloodline going to waste.</em> The words feel like another secret. "Dunno," he says.</p><p>His attacker huffs. "If I'd known I wouldn't get expelled, I would have given it a shot," she grumbles.</p><p>"I still had to take the test," Soul says.</p><p>"And you should be grateful, brat."</p><p>The three of them turn to face their team captain, a red-headed man who looks about the same age as Soul's brother, or maybe as Mr. Akane.</p><p>"Who are you?" asks the blonde girl.</p><p>"Captain Albarn," says the other girl at the same time, bowing.</p><p>"Hello, Miss Tsubaki," Captain Albarn says, beaming at her. "You were always a good kid."</p><p>"Thank you, sir," Tsubaki replies.</p><p>"Hey," says the blonde. "Don't ignore me."</p><p>Captain Albarn's smile twitches a little as he turns to her. "Liz Thompson, right?" he asks. "I was in the same genin class as your parents. It's a pleasure to finally meet you."</p><p>Liz sneers. "I have no idea who you are. Don't pretend like we're close."</p><p>Captain Albarn hitches his smile higher. "My name is Spirit Albarn, Miss Liz. I will be your captain, so please grant me some respect."</p><p>Liz crosses her arms. "Earn it."</p><p>The captain doesn't seem to have a response to that. He just smiles awkwardly at her for another beat before turning to Soul. "You. Evans."</p><p>Soul straightens his spine. "Yes, sir. Soul Evans, sir."</p><p>"I know your name," Captain Albarn says shortly. "I want <em>you</em> to know that whatever nonsense you pulled at the Academy won't get past me."</p><p>"Y-yes, sir," says Soul.</p><p>Captain Albarn takes a moment to distribute their forehead protectors, shining metal plates fastened to dark strips of fabric. Soul follows his teammates' lead and ties them around his forehead like a headband.</p><p>Once their forehead protectors are secured, Captain Albarn claps his hands together. "Now, training! You all know how to control your chakra well enough to perform a transformation technique, so next I want you to control your chakra well enough to keep the sand out of your shoes."</p><p>He means this literally, Soul soon finds. The four of them had met on the north rim of the canyon, as the team assignment papers had told them to; Captain Albarn guides them out into the dunes, where the sand is even more slippery than it is on the training grounds and threatens to swallow them whole. Soul's shoes are gritty with sand before they are three steps out of the village. He wishes he'd worn his traveling boots. His shiny new forehead protector keeps slipping down his forehead and into his eyes. He eventually shoves it up into his hair and forgets about it.</p><p>"You can focus on this as we go," Captain Albarn lectures, walking easily over the earth and leaving no imprints in the sand. "Concentrate your chakra on the bottoms of your feet as you take each step."</p><p>Tsubaki figures it out first. Actually, she doesn't have to figure anything out at all. She just <em>knows</em>.</p><p>"As expected of a Nakatsukasa," Captain Albarn says fondly, and Soul wishes the late afternoon sun would burn his ears off his head. Maybe then he won't have to listen to the captain fawning over Tsubaki.</p><p>Tsubaki doesn't even look smug. "My family taught me," she says almost apologetically. "But I practiced with our garden pond."</p><p>"Fancy," Liz mutters. She shoots a look at Soul as if to say, <em>Crazy, right?</em></p><p>Soul has no idea what she means. The Evans compound has a pond in the garden, too.</p><p>Tsubaki doesn't seem to know how to reply to Liz any more than Captain Albarn does. If anything, she withdraws, offering only an uncertain smile to their teammate.</p><p>Soul stays silent. If he doesn't say anything, maybe Tsubaki won't judge him the way Liz and Captain Albarn already have. This way, he won't draw Liz's disdain again, either. Then again, maybe Tsubaki <em>is </em>judging him, and he just doesn't know because she's too perfect to let it show, just like Wes.</p><p>His boots are full of sand when the sun sets that day. He doesn't dare complain, though Liz complains more than enough for the both of them. Captain Albarn dismisses them when they return to the gate.</p><p>"Evans," he calls as Soul starts limping away.</p><p>Soul turns back. "Sir?"</p><p>Captain Albarn presses his lips into a flat line. "Your forehead protector." He extends a hand. The metal plate catches the light of a nearby lamp. The black strip of cloth that it is fastened to is folded neatly underneath the metal.</p><p>Soul's hand shoots up to his head, and indeed, his forehead protector is gone. His ears throb painfully. "Wh-when did I…?"</p><p>"If you're serious about being a ninja," says Captain Albarn, "you won't lose it again." He tosses the item at Soul and vanishes with a puff of smoke.</p><p>Soul fumbles to grab the forehead protector before it can fall. He manages to catch it by the fabric band, though not before the other end flutters against the sandy ground. Soul folds it up, carefully, and limps home alone.</p><p>He makes sure to sneak in through the Evans's family grove, a collection of trees that climbs the side of the canyon on the southern border of the compound. He doesn't feel like being told to straighten his spine or asked why he's walking funny. He thinks he might cry if he is, and then he'd only be told to stop.</p><p>It's his own fault. He'd gotten his hopes up. He should have known he would never be lucky enough to get along with anyone, not even his teammates, not even with his captain. Fate isn't that kind.</p><p>Fate has nothing to do with it, though. Soul was the one stupid enough to drop the symbol of his entire country and not even realize it.</p><p>When he feels the tears roll down his cheeks, he sits down where he is, in the middle of the grove. Something sharp lurks in his chakra, threatens to turn him to steel. He lets it. His limbs go heavy and drag him down onto the loamy soil, and he lies flat on his back and cries and cries.</p><p>Here, at least, he can do that. It's not like the trees will tell anyone.</p>
<hr/><p>Kid wakes up in his bed in Gallows Mansion.</p><p>Early morning sunlight peeks in through the window. The sky is still a soft, glowing gold. Kid wonders who carried him home and feels ashamed at his weakness. He's still in yesterday's clothes. He feels disgusting.</p><p>He should be stronger than this. He's the son of the strongest ninja in the village, the strongest ninja in the entire country. It's cruel irony that he is so weak.</p><p>The doorbell rings, a light buzzing that he can barely hear from his room. He pushes himself to his feet in time for a knock at his bedroom door.</p><p>"Kid?" says a girl's voice. Kid debates the merits of hopping out of his window and heading to the grove for a good, long scream. Then he realizes that the voice belongs to Maka Albarn… and still inches toward the window. If his own teammate is going to fawn over him the way he remembers the other Academy girls doing, he is going to need some time to himself.</p><p>"Hey Kid," says Black Star, "open the damn door. Ow! What was that for?"</p><p>"Cursing is bad," Maka says primly. "Kid, we wanted to talk about our team."</p><p>"I don't get why we have to talk on a Saturday," Black Star grumbles. "Why not just wait until he's better?"</p><p>"Because that's a whole <em>week</em> away," says Maka. "We can't stay with Captain Stein for a whole <em>week</em>. He's <em>awful</em>."</p><p>Well, she's not wrong about that. The urge to scream dies down a little. Kid decides that if he <em>really</em> doesn't like Maka, he can just fake being sick. That'll make her leave right away, and <em>then</em> he can go scream at some trees.</p><p>He opens his door. "And what do you plan to do about it?"</p><p>Maka beams at him. Her pupils are tiny green crosses, meaning that she's been using her clan's chakra perception technique. "I'm going to petition for a new captain," she says, blinking her eyes back to normal.</p><p>Kid watches her warily. "Why? What happened after… What happened yesterday?"</p><p>"You <em>fainted</em>," says Black Star.</p><p>Kid glares at him. "I'm aware, Captain Obvious."</p><p>"Captain Stein agreed to train us," Maka says begrudgingly. "He obviously hates us, though. He just makes us do target practice. I'm not even allowed to use my <em>Juuji-sen </em>for accuracy."</p><p>"He makes <em>me</em> practice hand seals," Black Star adds.</p><p>Kid thinks of their Academy scores (he'd looked up their files when he'd first received his team assignment, yesterday morning, before the debacle that was their meeting). "He's taking you seriously."</p><p>Maka swells. "As if," she spits. "He's just giving us busywork while he waits for <em>you</em> to get better."</p><p>She's <em>angry</em>. Kid is impressed. He wasn't sure if girls could get angry. They always seemed to smile around him.</p><p>Then she blushes. <em>Uh oh.</em></p><p>"He <em>is</em>," she says, and oh, she's just embarrassed that she yelled. "Waiting for you. It's obvious you're the only one he wants to teach."</p><p>She is impressively matter-of-fact. There is no hint of resentment in her voice, though Black Star is scowling at her words. The accusation is an understandable one, too. Kid has no doubt that most people <em>would</em> try to prioritize him. Until moments ago, Kid would even have agreed with her assessment.</p><p>Of course, moments ago, Kid had found out that Captain Stein was giving his teammates "busywork." If the man didn't intend to train them, there would be no reason to do that, and even less reason to give them "busywork" that clearly targets their weaknesses.</p><p>Kid points this out. He leaves out the part about weaknesses.</p><p>"I guess so," Maka says doubtfully.</p><p>"So you won't help us with the peppishun?" Black Star asks.</p><p>"Petition," Maka corrects automatically.</p><p>"Yeah, what she said."</p><p>"I don't think—" Kid starts.</p><p>Black Star slings an arm across Maka's shoulders. "That's too bad," he says over Maka's complaints. "Let's go find someone who <em>isn't</em> an ass who can help. Ow!"</p><p>"<em>Language!</em>" She ducks out of Black Star's embrace and turns back to Kid. "If you don't agree, fine, but <em>we're</em> still going to the Tamashikage." She pauses, frowning, clearly trying to phrase her next thought. "You should come with us anyway. Whichever way you think, you can tell him directly."</p><p>Kid can't restrain a scoff. "He's too busy for a genin team," he says. "He's not going to be able to see you."</p><p>Maka lifts her nose. "It's his job to listen to his people," she replies, "so he'll see us."</p><p>Kid stares at her. She is determined. She intends to follow through, he realizes with a start, whether or not Kid comes along. If she had hoped for Kid to ask his father directly, she clearly had not relied on it.</p><p>"I'll go," he finally agrees.</p>
<hr/><p>Team Albarn's first mission is to find a cat. "Our team was specifically requested," Captain Albarn informs them, glaring daggers at Soul. Soul has no idea why the man hates him so much.</p><p>He doesn't think much of the request until Captain Albarn takes them to the Evans compound, and then Soul wishes very much for the ground to swallow him whole. Tsubaki looks as pleasant as ever, but Liz Thompson looks betrayed.</p><p>Wes greets them at the entrance gate, smiling. Their parents are nowhere to be seen. Captain Albarn introduces himself and his team politely enough, but there is especial malice in the way he puts a hand on Soul's shoulder and says, "And your precious little brother, of course."</p><p>Wes's reply hits even harder. "I'm sure I don't know what you mean."</p><p>The two adults chat as Wes guides them to the grove. "I don't know if you've heard," he says, "but the grove is closed to the Academy tracking and terrain training until my poor cat can be found. I know our honored ninja would never harm the darling, but I wouldn't want her to get spooked and hurt herself."</p><p>Soul didn't know his brother had a cat. How old is she? Why hasn't Soul ever seen her?</p><p>"All due respect, master Evans," says Captain Albarn, "but why not ask for a more experienced team?"</p><p>Wes's smile widens. "And pay the extra fee? No, thank you." His tone is pleasant, as though he has made a private joke.</p><p>Captain Albarn doesn't laugh. He turns his attention to the grove instead, little green crosses in his eyes. "There's no danger," he says abruptly. "I'll leave you three to it." His tone allows no room for disagreement. Even Liz doesn't protest, though she is eying the trees with something like fear. The three of them leave Captain Albarn and Wes standing together as they enter the grove.</p><p>The trees are a tribute to the Evans' clan ancestors, who hail from the forests of Yuurei. Soul remembers being told to stay out of the way of the Academy classes in the years before he'd transferred into the Academy. He must have listened, too: the only stranger he remembers finding in this forest was alone, not with a school.</p><p>Soul likes the trees. They are still and calm in the way the rest of the Evans compound isn't— or, they are still and calm, but they are not <em>cold</em>, not even at night, when the desert temperatures drop like stone. He is used to the way the sunlight vanishes, blocked out by a dense canopy of leaves, and the way the hum of wind, ever present in the windy little canyon that contains their village, is swallowed by the trees.</p><p>Liz is shaking. "This place is c-creepy," she says. She claps a hand to her mouth to stifle the noise, surprised by the volume of her own voice. "This place is creepy!" she repeats in a whisper.</p><p>Soul remembers the first time he'd been in the grove alone. "It's better quiet than with screaming," he says.</p><p>"Screaming?" Liz whimpers. "Why was there screaming? Are there— <em>Are there ghosts here?</em>"</p><p>"It was nothing," Soul says hastily. Stupid mouth, talking before he can think. "And it was a long time ago. Years."</p><p>"<em>Did someone die here?</em>"</p><p>"No!"</p><p>Tsubaki clears her throat. "We've been here with the Academy before," she reminds Liz. "Remember? When we were ten?"</p><p>"That's different!" Liz hisses. "That was with the class and with Mr. Barrett!"</p><p>She looks like a cat herself, bristling and angry. It reminds Soul of why they're in the grove in the first place. "How are we going to find the cat?" he asks.</p><p>Liz rounds on him. "Why are you so <em>calm</em>?" she demands. "It's so creepy!"</p><p>"It's just quiet," says Soul, baffled.</p><p>"You're a ghost," Liz decides. "You died here and you're a ghost and that's why you're so <em>calm</em> in here. You're going to kill me and hide the body."</p><p>"Miss Thompson," Tsubaki starts hesitantly.</p><p>"Liz," Liz corrects fiercely, rounding on the other girl. She's completely forgotten her qualms about being loud. "I'm <em>Liz</em>, not <em>Miss Thompson</em>. That's my mom, not me."</p><p>Tsubaki looks surprised. "L-Liz," she says, even more hesitant than before. "Um, the faster we find the cat, the faster we can leave."</p><p>Liz calms down a little at Tsubaki's words. "Fine." She throws a glare at Soul. </p><p>"Soul is our teammate," Tsubaki says. "I'm sure he won't kill us, even if he <em>is</em> dead."</p><p>"I'm not dead," Soul says, despairing.</p><p>"That's what a ghost would say," Liz says. "Let's just find the stupid cat."</p><p>"Shall we split up?" Tsubaki asks. "To cover more ground?"</p><p>"I don't want to," Liz replies, ending the conversation.</p><p>They do not split up.</p><p>Tsubaki tries to make conversation, and Soul manages to answer some of her questions (<em>Where did the trees come from? How long have the Evans family kept them? You said they were from Yuurei? Have you ever gone?</em>), but Liz is impatient and distant, even when Tsubaki asks her directly about their Academy outing.</p><p>They find the cat after several hours. Soul hadn't even realized that the grove was big enough to <em>spend</em> hours in without turning the same leaf twice; he typically follows the paths worn into the ground, rather than rummaging through the underbrush the way they've had to. Thankfully, the quiet makes it easier to follow: they can all hear the rustle of leaves when it's nearby.</p><p><em>Catching</em> the cat is another matter. Liz refuses to get near it; Soul keeps wondering how long Wes has had the thing and misses every time he grabs for it; and Tsubaki, try as she might, never gets a good enough grip on the wriggly creature to keep it from escaping. "I just don't want to hurt it!" she cries after the third time it claws out of her grasp.</p><p>Captain Albarn catches up with them an hour after that. "Why don't you use your bloodline limit?" he asks Tsubaki.</p><p>"I don't know if I can control it well enough," she replies fretfully. "I don't want to stab it."</p><p>The captain ruffles her hair, which is somehow twig-free despite its length and the frequency with which its owner has been diving into bushes. "Give it a shot," he advises. "You two, watch carefully."</p><p>Liz glowers at him. "It's a bloodline limit," she says. "I couldn't use it even if I wanted to."</p><p>The cat sits on a branch just out of reach. It's been treating their fumbling attempts to catch it as a game, and is watching them as Tsubaki literally dips her hands into a shadow. Captain Albarn replies to Liz as dark ribbons flicker up from the earth and flow toward the animal. "You're right, Miss Liz," he says. "This isn't something you'll ever use yourself. However, you <em>will</em> be working with Miss Tsubaki for a long time. You need to know what she can and cannot do, and you will need to be able to supplement and support her powers— or at least," and he casts a pointed look at Soul as he says this, "you need to stay out of the way, so you don't get hurt."</p><p>Soul doesn't meet his captain's gaze. Instead, he watches the shadows flicker across the loamy soil. <em>So this is what a real ninja is capable of.</em> He feels smaller than ever.</p><p>Tsubaki wraps the cat in layers of shadow and brings it to Wes. Soul avoids his brother's eyes that day and for the next week. It isn't hard: Wes is busy, and now that Soul has training or more pet retrieval missions, so is he.</p><p>This way, he doesn't have to see Wes's disappointment, too.</p>
<hr/><p>Once again, Kid is at a loss to understand his father.</p><p>This time, it's the cheerful way in which Lord Death had overridden Maka's concerns and sent them on their first mission that has him reeling. Maka looks like she hasn't recovered, either, which makes Kid feel slightly better about not being able to keep up with his father's whims. At least he's built up some tolerance to his father's ways.</p><p>Captain Stein isn't helping matters, either. He makes no effort to speak with his students, or even to the rancher they have been assigned to help; that task falls to the dubious capabilities of Black Star, who is fascinated by the llamas carrying the rancher's supplies. At least Maka stirs from her shock to stop their teammate from pestering their client over the chance of a joyride.</p><p>Kid is surprised when Captain Stein actually speaks. "I was told you read a lot of books," the man says abruptly.</p><p>"Yes?" Kid replies cautiously. He hadn't failed his first genin exam for want of knowledge, just for want of nerve. He'd known the history of the entire village by the time he entered the Academy.</p><p>Captain Stein pulls a book from his jacket pocket. "I have some assigned reading for you."</p><p>Kid eyes the book, unimpressed. "I learned about human anatomy when I was eight."</p><p>"Did you?" Captain Stein asks blandly. "Please reread the chapters on chakra management, the digestive system, and the side-effects of dehydration and malnutrition."</p><p>"I am not <em>malnourished</em>," Kid says indignantly.</p><p>Captain Stein looks deeply unimpressed. "Not yet, perhaps," he says cryptically, pulling a second book from another pocket. "When you're done, review this one as well."</p><p>"I looked into psychology, too," says Kid. "It was the next logical step. Both body and mind are important for resisting genjutsu."</p><p>"I recommend a second look at Chapter Four, Section Three: Stress Factors," the captain continues, as if he hadn't heard Kid. "You may want to look it up in the index as well, the information is more scattered in this text." He stacks a third book on top of the two Kid is already holding. "This one, too."</p><p>"Self-care?"</p><p>"Have you read it?"</p><p>"Yes," Kid lies flatly, "when I was two."</p><p>"That seems likely, as you've clearly forgotten everything it says," Captain Stein replies, equally deadpan.</p><p>"Why are you giving these to me now?" Kid asks. "We're on a mission."</p><p>Captain Stein pins him with a look. "You are not going to help with the mission," he replies.</p><p>Kid stares, aghast. "What?"</p><p>Captain Stein smirks. "You were supposed to take a week to recover from the chakra overloading your system," he says. "Thanks to Miss Albarn's stunt, it's been less than two days."</p><p>"Miss Albarn wouldn't have bothered if you'd been a good captain," Kid retorts. He gestures at his Shinugakure headband with his free hand. "Sir, I am an official ninja of Shinugakure. I'm <em>on a mission</em>."</p><p>"A mission that your teammates can handle easily," Captain Stein replies. "A mission that your teammates <em>will</em> handle easily. Black Star alone has enough energy to cover your absence."</p><p>"My absence," Kid repeats.</p><p>Captain Stein taps the books. "While you read up."</p><p>Kid feels fury rising in his chest. His own chakra threatens to bury him alive. He fights it down. "All due respect," he says through gritted teeth, "I wish to do my duty. I definitely do <em>not</em> wish to make myself an unwanted guest in the home of a <em>client</em>."</p><p>"Tough," Captain Stein says. "Your duty is what I say it is. You will read what you've been assigned, so that you understand <em>why</em> you are not going to participate in this mission, nor in any future mission I order you to stand down from."</p><p>It's the phrasing that shakes Kid out of his fury— Captain Stein will <em>order</em> him to stand down. No one has given Kid orders before. Nobody had dared, not even his tutors. His father probably would, except that Lord Death has never given Kid an order in his life, only recommended that Kid "slow down."</p><p>As if Kid has the luxury.</p><p>He glares up at his captain. "Fine," he says. "I'll… stand down, this time. But next time you have to tell me why. Maka and Black Star, too. They deserve to know why they're picking up after me," he adds bitterly.</p><p>Captain Stein places a massive palm over Kid's head. "Whatever you say, little Death," he says, ruffling Kid's hair.</p><p>Maka chooses that moment to stomp up to Captain Stein, dragging Black Star by the elbow. "Sir," she announces, "please tell Star to stay away from the llamas. The rancher is going to send us back to Shinugakure if he doesn't, and I <em>refuse</em> to fail my first mission."</p><p>"Seriously, Maka, there's a rabbit on your back," says Black Star, poking at her worriedly. Maka hisses back at him.</p><p>"Stay away from the llamas, Black Star," Captain Stein says obediently, if tonelessly. "You might want to listen to him, Miss Albarn."</p><p>Maka blinks. The <em>Juuji-sen</em> activates, tiny crosses emerging from otherwise pupil-less eyes. Then she screeches, letting go of Black Star and clawing at her back. "Captain Stein, what did you <em>do</em>?!"</p><p>"I believe you can see for yourself," Captain Stein replies. "You rely too much on your bloodline limit, Miss Albarn. Please work on detecting chakra signatures without it."</p><p>Kid scoots around Maka to see for himself. Black Star had been right: in the dimly-glowing chakra threads that are the signature of their captain, neatly stitched into the back of her clothes, is the outline of a lop-eared bunny.</p>
<hr/><p>Soul's thirteenth birthday falls on a weekend. With no training to keep him occupied, he sneaks into the grove to continue avoiding his brother.</p><p>He hears Kid before he sees him, a distant sound of wailing that Soul follows to a crack several feet up the canyon wall. Soul has to scramble up a tree to get even with the other boy. "Crying again?" he asks, clinging to the trunk of the oak he's climbed.</p><p>Kid wipes at his eyes. "I d-don't cry," he hiccups. "I'm just…." He interrupts himself with a sigh that turns into an angry wail.</p><p>Soul waits patiently for the scream to peter out. "That bad?" he says.</p><p>Kid pulls himself to his feet and launches himself at Soul. Soul holds his breath, but of course Kid lands on the big branch above Soul without a problem. After all, Kid is a ninja, born and raised.</p><p>Kid reaches down and helps Soul up. Sand hovers in the air, the way it always does when Kid comes to the grove. To Soul, it looks like a protective cloud. If it acted like a regular sandstorm, Soul would probably be annoyed, but it tends to stay around Kid's feet and never gets into his eyes or mouth the way real sandstorms do, even when Soul is being pulled through it.</p><p>They're pretty high up, now. Soul tries not to look down. This is easier when Kid throws his arms around Soul. "I w-wish you were one of my teammates," Kid says, still hiccuping a little. "It would be…. It would…. I wouldn't f-feel as bad."</p><p>"I wish you were on my team, too," Soul admits. He thinks about Tsubaki, who is nice, but reminds him of the quiet cold of the Evans' compound; then he thinks about Liz, who has only gotten angrier with him since their first mission, even though Soul has no idea what he's done to make her mad; then he thinks about Captain Albarn, who has never liked him since day one, and keeps making him sit out of training sessions, because Soul is so useless that training with his teammates would just put him in danger.</p><p>He drops his head to Kid's shoulder and cries.</p><p>"S-Soul?" Kid says. "Oh, n-no. A-are you all right? W-what happened?"</p><p>Soul shakes his head. His throat is closed too tight for words.</p><p>Kid hugs him tighter, fierce and protective. It reminds Soul of the way Wes used to hug him, a long time ago. The thought summons another wave of tears.</p><p>They stand on the branch together as the sun approaches high noon. They're still mostly under the canopy, so it doesn't get too bright or too hot, but it is a little windier than Soul is used to. Eventually they manage to sit down on their branch. Soul keeps his feet firmly on the top of the branch and leans against the tree trunk, but Kid dangles his legs off the side.</p><p>"They hate me," Soul finally explains. "My teammates, even my captain."</p><p>Kid frowns. "Mr. Albarn does?" he asks. "That's weird. He doesn't usually hate people. It's his job to get along with them. His entire <em>specialty</em> is gathering information, and not by sneaking around."</p><p>Soul shrugs. "I think it's because I— I dropped my forehead protector on the first day of training. I didn't even notice until he gave it back to me at the end of training." He reaches for his neck, where he's taken to tying the forehead protector like a scarf. He hasn't lost it since that first day. "I think… I think that <em>he </em>doesn't think I'm serious about being a ninja. He won't even let me train with the other two."</p><p>"He <em>what</em>?" Kid says. "Is he <em>stupid</em>? He's going to get you killed on a mission!"</p><p>"I don't do much on missions," Soul admits. "Tsubaki handles most of them. Captain Albarn likes her best."</p><p>"Captain Albarn <em>knows</em> her best," Kid corrects. "Everyone's heard of the Nakatsukasas."</p><p>Soul looks at him. "I hadn't."</p><p>Kid waves a hand. "Your family isn't a ninja clan— no, listen, your great-grandfather doesn't count! He was a ninja, sure, but that doesn't make your <em>clan</em> a ninja clan. You grew up learning about exports and international politics, not about chakra control and bloodline limits. Anyway, he's still training your other teammate, right? Um, one of the Thompsons, right?"</p><p>Soul <em>knows</em> that Kid has access to basically all the village files, but he hasn't seen a demonstration like this in a while. All he can do is nod.</p><p>"So it's just <em>you</em> he's ignoring." Kid shakes his head angrily. "<em>Why?</em> You haven't lost your forehead protector since, I'm willing to bet. You work hard, and you listen, and you're <em>smart</em>. What is he <em>doing</em>?"</p><p>Soul's ears flush at the compliments. "I'm not that good—"</p><p>"Yes, you <em>are</em>," Kid insists. "You wouldn't have graduated if you weren't! Besides, you're serious about being a ninja, aren't you?"</p><p>"Yes." That's the one thing Soul is sure about. No matter what, he has to be a ninja, and he has to be good at it. He has a <em>team</em>. As much as he is able, he refuses to let them down, even if they <em>do</em> hate his guts.</p><p>Kid nods decisively. "Then I'll help you train, myself."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p><a href="#2t" id="2n" name="2n">[2]</a> <em>Juuji-sen</em> (十字線) - "crosshair," or (more literally) "'ten'-shaped lines," where the character for ten (十) looks like a crosshair. The name of the Albarns' bloodline limit. As the name suggests, it manifests as tiny crosshairs in otherwise pupil-less eyes.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Age: 14. Rank: C.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Chapter warnings: Kid doesn't have an eating disorder (nor is he an insomniac ftr), but he is truly terrible at remembering that his body exists and needs taking care of. That said, he and Maka (and Black Star) have a conversation in this chapter that is ED-adjacent and potentially triggering. Please be kind to yourselves.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Captain Stein arrives late to the rendezvous point for their latest mission, an escort job for a merchant. "For you," he says, shoving a store-bought <em>obentou</em><sup><a href="#3n" id="3t" name="3t">[3]</a></sup> and a flask of tea at Kid. "Finish these before we set off."</p><p>Their client looks torn between frustration and amusement. Kid wishes he could find the situation as humorous. "This isn't necessary," he objects, barely catching the unwanted goods. "I ate breakfast."</p><p>"I'm very proud of you," the captain says solemnly. "Eat those, too."</p><p>Kid grits his teeth. "All due respect, Captain," he starts, "but we're already running late. We should be helping this gentleman back to his village."</p><p>"Just eat the food," the client says, giving in to his amusement. "Let your dad take care of you, son. The spirits know I would, too, if my kid were as skinny as you."</p><p>Kid stares at the client, aghast. Captain Stein takes the opportunity to say, "Yes, son, eat up."</p><p>Maka Albarn intervenes. "I agree with Kid, sir," she says, stiffly, but Kid can tell she is every bit as angry as he is. "It would be unprofessional to make Mr. Masuta wait longer than he already has. Also, Kid isn't your son."</p><p>"Oh, well," says Captain Stein. "If Miss Rules says so."</p><p>"I say so, too," says Black Star. He doesn't stick his tongue out at Captain Stein, but it's a near thing. Last year, he definitely would have.</p><p>"It appears we have been overruled," Captain Stein tells the merchant. "Shall we?"</p><p>The merchant is clearly bemused by their captain, but he is happy enough to leave Shinugakure. Lucky for him, Maka Albarn is more than happy to entertain, as Captain Stein never seems to be.</p><p>Lucky for Kid, too, because he has words for Captain Stein that he would rather not say in front of a client. "Stop favoring me," he demands.</p><p>Captain Stein eyes him. "I'm not."</p><p>"Then what are these?" Kid asks, brandishing the unopened lunchbox and flask.</p><p>"Precautionary measures," Captain Stein replies. He takes the goods, though, and then pokes Black Star. "Guard dog," he says, and Black Star glances over with ill grace. "Come carry your teammate."</p><p>Black Star looks blank for a moment, and then his eyes light on Kid. "Fine," he says sourly.</p><p>Kid is startled. "Since when do you listen to Captain Stein?" he asks.</p><p>"Since my idiot teammate looks like he's about a second away from fainting," Black Star replies, sounding resigned.</p><p>As if on cue, the world spins. Kid feels someone catch him by the elbow and hoist him roughly into a piggyback.</p><p>"Don't," he mumbles.</p><p>"Shut up, Kid."</p><p>Black Star is carrying him, then. Kid can't decide if that's better or worse than Captain Stein taking the burden that is Kid's dead weight.</p><p>"I'm sorry," Kid mutters.</p><p>Black Star doesn't seem to hear him. "I don't get it," he says after a moment. "Why does Maka like you?"</p><p>"Because we're teammates?" Kid says.</p><p>Black Star scoffs. "You like her, too, then?"</p><p>"Yes," Kid says slowly. "She's a good teammate. She's <em>competent</em>."</p><p>"But you <em>like</em> her," Black Star repeats.</p><p>Kid suddenly understands what Black Star is suggesting. His eyebrows shoot up his face. "Not romantically," he says honestly.</p><p>"Not— <em>what?</em> But…." Black Star falls silent.</p><p>Kid has another epiphany. "But <em>you</em> do," he says, and watches the back of Black Star's neck flush bright red.</p><p>Kid's eyebrows feel dangerously close to assimilating with his hairline. "You have a crush on Maka," he says out loud.</p><p>"It's not a <em>crush</em>," Black Star says heatedly.</p><p>Kid taps at Black Star's shoulder to stop the thought. "We're <em>fourteen</em>." He wrinkles his nose. "Thirteen, in Maka's case. Why did you think I like her?"</p><p>"How can you not?" Black Star asks.</p><p>"Why do you think Maka likes <em>me</em>?" Kid continues, ignoring the interruption. "That's just ridiculous."</p><p>"Because she said she does," says Black Star.</p><p>"She was lying," Kid says immediately.</p><p>"Who was lying?" Maka asks.</p><p>Black Star yelps. Kid tumbles backwards off of him, flailing. Maka, the most blessedly competent member of their team, catches Kid before he hits the ground.</p><p>"Do you like me?" Kid asks.</p><p>Maka's brow wrinkles. "Yes?" she says. "You're a good teammate." There is no trace of a blush on her cheeks. It is a stark difference from the way she blushes whenever she sees Black Star for the first time in a while.</p><p>Kid nods. "That's what I thought."</p><p>Black Star is staring at both of them like they've grown extra heads.</p><p>Kid is still a little wobbly on his feet. Maka takes a turn carrying Kid on piggyback despite Black Star's protests. "You've already dropped him once, Star. Did you actually eat breakfast?" Maka adds to Kid.</p><p>"Yes," Kid snaps, wounded at this betrayal. "I had a nutrition bar. It was all I had time for this morning."</p><p>"Dumb butt," says Black Star. "You can't have breakfast without ramen."</p><p>"<em>You</em> can't have breakfast without ramen."</p><p>"Yeah, and I'm doing <em>great</em>."</p><p>"So am I, and I don't eat ramen hardly ever." Maka barely looks at Black Star, frowning instead at Kid. "You were at the meeting place earlier than I was. You could have spent an extra half-hour on more food."</p><p>"I didn't come directly from breakfast," Kid says. "I was busy."</p><p>Maka sighs. "Kid, when did you eat your… breakfast?"</p><p>Kid tries to count the hours and gives up. "Sun-up," he says instead.</p><p>"That was <em>three hours ago</em>." Black Star sounds horrified.</p><p>"There are six hours between lunch and dinner," Kid points out. "I don't see the problem."</p><p>"Were you planning on eating a nutrition bar for lunch, too?" Maka demands.</p><p>"No," Kid allows. "... I should probably eat, shouldn't I."</p><p>"<em>Yes.</em>"</p><p>It's rare that Maka and Black Star agree on anything. Kid is astonished enough to accept the flask of tea that Black Star hands him. "Where's Captain Stein?" Kid asks. "I thought I gave him the food."</p><p>Black Star starts to speak, but Maka cuts him off. "Drink first," she orders.</p><p>Kid stares down at the flask. Guilt and shame brew in his lungs. "It's not fair," he says quietly. "I don't need Captain Stein to buy me food."</p><p>"You kind of do," Black Star says.</p><p>Kid makes an aggrieved noise. "Then he should buy <em>you</em> two food, too. You're better on missions than I am."</p><p>Maka snorts. "We're not the ones who forget to eat," she informs him.</p><p>"I do <em>not </em>forget to eat," Kid grumbles. "I have eaten three meals every day for the past year."</p><p>"You think a single nutrition bar is a meal," Maka says. "Kid, no offense, but I'm a little worried about how much you eat on the nights we don't drag you to dinners after training."</p><p>"You do not <em>drag</em> me."</p><p>"Please just tell me you eat more than nutrition bars for dinner."</p><p>Kid sighs. "I eat with my father on the nights he's available."</p><p>"Not often, then," Black Star mutters. "The Tamashikage is super busy."</p><p>"He has to eat, too," Kid points out.</p><p>"Kid, you've said before that you only have dinner with your dad once a week," Maka says. "Please drink the tea."</p><p>Kid relents. He's not happy about it, but he drinks the tea. "Can we please share the <em>obentou</em>," he mutters.</p><p>"Sure," Maka agrees. "Just don't let Star inhale it."</p><p>Star clutches his heart. "I would never! I'm not <em>that</em> stupid."</p><p>"Not even for ramen?" Kid asks.</p><p>"<em>Maybe</em> for ramen. Can ramen come in <em>obentou</em>s?"</p><p>"Maybe. Is it still ramen without soup?"</p><p>"<em>No.</em> Yes? If there were enough sides, and if the noodles soaked enough flavor…."</p><p>Kid tunes out his teammates and their ramen-<em>obentou</em>-planning to sip his tea in relative peace.</p>
<hr/><p>Team Albarn is on a reconnaissance mission the first time Soul dares to initiate a conversation with Tsubaki.</p><p>It's not the worst mission Soul has ever been on. That superlative goes, hands down, to the farming mission a few months ago, when he had accidentally flooded part of a field because his foot turned into a scythe, and then the rest of him had turned into a scythe, too. He'd wound up locked into a storage barn before he could figure out how to turn back. Tsubaki had found him with the help of her bloodline limit, but not before the team had spent several hours looking for him. He'd spent that evening apologizing to their client for the inconvenience and being forced to sit out the rest of the mission.</p><p>Soul regularly has nightmares about that mission.</p><p>The mission now is uncomfortable, but nowhere near as bad. Soul still doesn't like strangers, and he definitely doesn't like being stuck in a tavern full of them, but he doesn't think he can cause as much damage here as he did to the field (and his ego, and his entire country's reputation). He and Tsubaki sit abandoned at their tavern table, filling themselves with greasy kebabs packed with more flavor than Soul has ever experienced before.</p><p>Liz had wandered off a while ago, not out of sight but definitely out of earshot, and is in the middle of an animated conversation with a waiter at the bar, her back to her teammates. Her hair is tied in elaborate braids today, the latest in the string of hairstyles she's been trying for the past month. Soul wonders what her drink is and whether it's alcoholic, though it doesn't seem to matter much considering that she hasn't touched it.</p><p>Captain Albarn is in a corner booth across the tavern, in full view of Soul and everyone between them, making out with a complete stranger. Soul wonders where the line between the mission and personal comfort sits for his captain. Soul doesn't think he'll ever go that far for a mission, no matter how much he wants to help, but the captain always seems to return from his flings with helpful tidbits and an odd affection. It reminds Soul that he's not good at this ninja thing: not at fighting, not at espionage, not at anything.</p><p>Soul checks on Captain Albarn again. It takes him a while to figure out whose limbs are where, and another moment to confirm that Captain Albarn is not, in fact, being strangled.</p><p>He looks back down at his food. He's only had one stick, but he's not sure his tastebuds will survive another.</p><p>Across the table, Tsubaki picks delicately at her own kebab. Soul hasn't seen any of it actually enter her mouth. "What's it like?" he blurts.</p><p>Tsubaki freezes. Soul sees shame in the way she stopped moving and immediately feels guilty himself.</p><p>"Y-you don't have to answer," he adds. "I was just wondering what it's like. Being in a clan."</p><p>Tsubaki puts down an untouched stick of meat. Soul thinks he detects relief in the motion. "What do you mean?" she asks, turning her dark eyes upon Soul. It's a gesture of politeness to grant him her full attention, but it reminds Soul of disapproving tutors.</p><p>Tsubaki isn't a tutor, though. He looks down at his plate anyway to rally his thoughts. "My family isn't… they're not ninja," he says. Even as he says it, he thinks of all the things his family has in common with the Nakatsukasas: that they are both wealthy, and that they both had two heirs. Does Tsubaki feel the same quiet pressure as Soul? Or is it lighter for a prodigy than for a cast-off?</p><p>Did she grieve when her brother vanished?</p><p>Tsubaki speaks. "I don't know how a ninja clan would be different from a merchant one," she says slowly. "I know I am protected. I know I am loved. I know I am fortunate to have my parents." Her eyes flick to the empty seat beside her, where Liz had sat when they'd first entered the tavern, and then back to Soul. "I would assume your family is the same."</p><p>Soul is not prepared for the implied question. It takes him a moment to reply. "Yeah," he says at last. "I guess so."</p><p>Tsubaki inspects him. "Are your parents… well?" she asks cautiously.</p><p>Soul has officially lost track of the conversation. He regrets ever starting it. "They're fine," he replies, equally cautious.</p><p>She nods slowly. "You don't have to answer," she says after a moment, "but I wondered— Where were they, when we went to find your brother's cat?"</p><p>Soul blinks at her. That mission had happened months ago now. "I don't remember," he says honestly. "A business meeting, probably. We were just some ninja that Wes asked for, as far as they knew. Why?" he asks belatedly. "Is that… Would your parents have been there?"</p><p>Tsubaki's expression softens to an almost-smile. "The Nakatsukasa clan would never require help from those outside the house," she says, and Soul recognizes habitual pride in the words, "but if anyone in the family had asked for a ninja team, then yes, they would have presented themselves. It would only be polite." She tilts her head. "You seemed upset. I thought something had happened."</p><p>Soul can feel his ears burning. "It's embarrassing, isn't it?" he asks. "Being from a merchant family."</p><p>Tsubaki looks surprised. "Why?"</p><p>He doesn't want to explain this part. He doesn't want to tell her exactly how poorly his parents think of ninja, and he doesn't want to admit that he'd assumed the opinion was mutual, so he doesn't. "No reason." It's not hard to figure out, anyway.</p><p>Tsubaki considers him. "Perhaps," she says, "that is one of the differences between ninja and merchants?"</p><p>The question is gentle, like a peace offering. Soul seizes onto it gratefully. "Perhaps," he says, and hopes he sounds more convinced than he is.</p>
<hr/><p>The first warning that Kid gets is Black Star's reckless shout of joy, the same one that he usually delivers when sparring with Captain Stein. Maka's shout follows soon after, activating her <em>Juuji-sen</em>, and then a clanging of weapons.</p><p>Kid and Captain Stein had been sitting at the back of the caravan, watching the rear, but Captain Stein disappears almost as soon as they hear Black Star. Kid doesn't get a chance to react before the cart lurches to a stop, sending Kid toppling backwards into it.</p><p>He rolls onto his knees and scrambles over a pile of burlap sacks. From here he can see most of the action, which is enough for him to fight.</p><p>He focuses on his chakra. Captain Stein has started to let him spar during training (though only with Maka and not Black Star, who isn't as good at stopping himself) after nearly three months of only meditation, and Kid has to admit that he feels more steady now, able to reach for more chakra without letting it overwhelm him.</p><p>He'll never tell Captain Stein, though. He's pretty sure that the meditation sessions had started as an excuse to bully Kid into taking a nap.</p><p>The next half-hour is a blur of concentration, of careful aiming and making sure the sand catches the bandits without tripping his team. At some point, he loses track of Maka; he finds her just as a sword-wielding bandit is about to overpower her, so he wraps a loop of sand around the man's sword and tries to pull it out of his hands. It doesn't go flying the way he wants it to, but Maka manages to recover, and then Captain Stein comes to the rescue.</p><p>Kid emerges once the sand has settled. He feels light-headed, but not quite to the point of passing out.</p><p>"You're late," the client merchant gripes at him as he steps forward shakily. "Your team cleaned up without you."</p><p>Kid does not bother to reply. One of the perks of his fighting style is that, if he plays his cards right, his opponents won't even know that he's there. The fact that this merchant didn't catch the odd behavior of the sand just means that he's achieved exactly that benefit. "You're bleeding," he says to Maka, who is nearest the caravans.</p><p>Maka glances at him. "Thanks for the save," she says. "That swordsman was really strong."</p><p>"I tripped the one that was trying to sneak up on you, too," Kid says.</p><p>"Really? Thanks."</p><p>"Of course."</p><p>A shout and a scuffle, and Kid scrambles for enough chakra to restrain one of the bandits, who managed to escape his sandy prison, send Black Star flying, and is now disappearing into the dunes. Kid is too careless, though— the chakra floods in, overwhelming him. He drops to his knees.</p><p>Maka, who had started to run to Black Star, falters and looks back at Kid. He tries to lift a hand to wave her on, but he's too busy trying not to pass out.</p><p>In the end, the lone bandit gets away. Captain Stein and Maka secure the remaining criminals while Kid and an unconscious Black Star recuperate in the back of the caravan. Eventually Captain Stein ushers Kid to the front of the caravan with Maka, "In case anything else happens," and stays in the back to both keep an eye on Black Star and maintain his position as the caravan's rear guard.</p><p>Maka is crying when Kid gets to her. Their client sends Kid a guarded look, as though trying to gauge if Kid will continue being "useless" or if he might actually be able to keep his teammate from soaking her sleeves. He ignores the look and sits beside Maka.</p><p>"He'll be okay," he tells her.</p><p>Maka whacks at him. "I know that!"</p><p>Kid winces when her fist jams into his upper arm. "Why are you crying, then?"</p><p>"Shut up!"</p><p>Kid complies. Maka doesn't resort to rudeness often; <em>Shut up</em> is strong language by her standards.</p><p>The merchant sends him an ugly look. Kid continues to ignore him.</p><p>"Sorry," Maka says miserably after a length of silence. "There was just… so much blood. And it's <em>Black Star</em>. And he was just<em> lying</em> <em>there</em>."</p><p>Kid grimaces at the memory. According to the captain, Black Star doesn't even have a concussion, but Kid has never seen the other boy running at anything less than 200%. Seeing him so still was uncanny. Kid says as much.</p><p>"Exactly," Maka says. She wipes at her eyes. "Sorry. About crying. And about yelling at you."</p><p>Kid thinks wryly of his strictly grove-contained tantrums. "Sometimes you just need to let it out," he says.</p><p>"<em>You</em> don't," Maka says.</p><p>"And I never will," Kid replies. "Not in front of anyone else." He fumbles with his words, because he doesn't want to sound like crying in public is so terrible. "I mean, it's fine for you! I'm just… I'm loud. It's embarrassing."</p><p>Maka laughs wetly. "And I'm not?"</p><p>"No," Kid says firmly. "You just watched your teammate get badly hurt, and then your other teammate nearly fainted like an idiot. You deserve a good cry."</p><p>Maka laughs again, then sniffles. "Don't tell him I cried."</p><p>Kid doesn't have to ask who she means. He still asks why, though.</p><p>"He'd make fun of me," says Maka.</p><p>Kid considers that. "I don't think he would."</p><p>"He would." Maka sounds absolutely sure of herself.</p><p>Kid is less confident. He's pretty sure that Black Star would be delighted to know that she cares. Still, Kid knows how vulnerable it is to cry. He puts a tentative hand on Maka's shoulder. "He'll be okay," he repeats quietly.</p><p>"I <em>know</em> that." She curls toward Kid, presses into his shoulder. He can feel the heat of her forehead seeping through his shirt. "I know that."</p>
<hr/><p>For their latest stake-out mission, Team Albarn has installed themselves on the roof of a building that is half-carved into the northern wall of the canyon. Their position provides a convenient vantage point for the residential building of interest. Soul isn't too sure what the target has done— something about infighting and espionage within the craftsmen's guilds— but the guilds requested an intervention, so here they are.</p><p>Captain Albarn is asleep within the first hour. Soul only notices because he's stopped giggling over his pervy book. About ten minutes later, Liz whispers, "Who wants to play cards?"</p><p>"Can we?" Tsubaki replies.</p><p>Liz snorts. "If Captain Albarn was worried about it, he wouldn't have fallen asleep," she says, already shuffling a deck of cards.</p><p>"I'll keep watch," says Soul, his eyes still fixed on their target's building.</p><p>"Suit yourself," Liz replies. "Have you played <em>oicho-kabu</em><sup><a href="#4n" id="4t" name="4t">[4]</a></sup> before, Nakatsukasa?"</p><p>Tsubaki doesn't answer verbally, but Soul hears her long ponytail swishing against her shoulders as she shakes her head no.</p><p>Three hours and a one-sided stack of favors later, Liz turns to Soul while Tsubaki is making faces at her current hand of cards. "How," whispers the blonde girl, "are you not <em>bored</em>?"</p><p>Soul doesn't take his eyes off the target's building. "I'm very bored," he disagrees. "How is, um. What are you playing now? Is it still <em>oicho-kabu</em>?"</p><p>"We stopped playing that hours ago," says Liz. "I didn't want to bleed Tsubaki <em>completely</em> dry. Your hand is showing again," she adds. Soul glances at them in time to catch her batting Tsubaki's hands up, so that she can't see her teammate's cards.</p><p>"Oh," Tsubaki says, startled. "Thank you. You said I was getting better at <em>oicho-kabu</em>," she adds indignantly as she moves a card from her hand to the pile that is facedown in front of her.</p><p>"And you were!" Liz says encouragingly. "I just didn't want you to get too frustrated. Besides, I thought you'd like <em>hen'iro-ryuu</em><sup><a href="#5n" id="5t" name="5t">[5]</a></sup> better."</p><p>"I'm still doing terribly," Tsubaki says glumly, drawing a card. "Your turn, by the way."</p><p>Liz plays a card and turns her attention back to Soul as Tsubaki sighs and contemplates her hand again. "Seriously, Evans, <em>how</em> are you still watching the building? Have you even seen anyone?"</p><p>Soul's eyes snap from his teammates back to the building. His blood is humming with the anxiety that he might have missed their target in the half-minute he spent watching his teammates, but a quick scan along the empty streets confirms that he hasn't. "No," he replies.</p><p>"You can join us whenever you like," Tsubaki offers.</p><p>"Maybe when we're not on a mission?" says Soul.</p><p>Liz snorts. "C'mon, Evans, you're making the rest of us look bad," she says.</p><p>"You <em>are</em> the only one who isn't doing anything else," Tsubaki mumbles.</p><p>"I'm practicing my chakra control?" Soul offers.</p><p>"<em>Bo-ring</em>," Liz groans, and then giggles. "Technically, Captain Albarn isn't doing <em>anything</em>, since he's asleep. You can't earn points with him now, Evans."</p><p>Soul feels his ears flush. "I'm not doing this to earn points." He hesitates for a second before admitting, "I don't think I <em>can</em> earn points with him. If I have points, they're all negative. Infinite negative points."</p><p>The girls don't seem to have an answer to that. Soul listens to the soft flicking of cards being played and kicks himself for ruining the conversation.</p><p>He goes back to practicing chakra control, but it's harder to focus when the sharp, steel <em>something</em> in his chakra is distracting him. Why does it have to respond to guilt? Why does it have to respond to emotions at all? What will it take for him to control it?</p><p>Captain Albarn startles him by sitting bolt upright. "Where's the target?" he hisses.</p><p>"Hasn't left the building, sir," Soul replies.</p><p>Captain Albarn regards him suspiciously. "How do you know?"</p><p>"Because he hasn't stopped staring at the building the entire time," Liz says impatiently as she shuffles her cards. "Unlike a certain <em>useless captain</em>."</p><p>"I was resting my eyes," Captain Albarn objects. He sighs. "And thinking about how much I miss my baby girl. It was just her birthday!"</p><p>Soul sends a desperate glance at Tsubaki, who is the only one who can stop Captain Albarn when he's fawning over his daughter, but she is peering over the edge of the roof and at the residential building, too.</p><p>"We made <em>obentou</em>s together this morning!" Captain Albarn continues happily. "Look, she even wrote me a message!"</p><p>Liz, who usually falls into a stony silence at the mention of Captain Albarn's daughter, actually snorts. "What a loving kid," she says.</p><p>Soul glances over, curious despite himself. He snorts, too, when he sees what Captain Albarn is so proudly displaying: shaky, childish, ketchup lettering on top of a neat loaf of <em>omurice</em><a href="#6n" id="6t" name="6t">[6]</a> which reads, "IDIOT PAPA."</p>
<hr/><p>Kid has grown to tolerate his meditation sessions. It helps that they only happen once a week now, so that Kid isn't isolated from his teammates for every training session. It also helps that Kid has started to actually eat when his stomach tells him to.</p><p>He feels pretty silly for not doing that sooner. More and more it feels like he was never as weak as he'd thought he was.</p><p>Maka had very smugly claimed responsibility for the change in Kid's training immediately before shoving a homemade <em>obentou</em> into his hands and telling everyone that they would be eating breakfast together before training sessions. "It's only fair," she'd said, winking at Kid.</p><p>Captain Stein had accepted the new meal plan without fuss. He had also promptly avenged his old training schedule by sneaking chakra-threads into the backs of their clothes. Maka and Kid have taken to alerting each other when they see any, but within the first week their captain had adjusted to making his threads almost invisible. They don't help Black Star, who spent an entire minute laughing when Kid had walked around for an entire day with "Feed Me" stitched into his shirt back. Black Star is by far the worst at detecting this tampering, but he also tends to blow it away every time he winds up for an attack. The captain takes advantage of this by getting creative with his stitching: the latest reads "It has been 14 days since Black Star noticed me."</p><p>They shift from target practice (Maka can now land bullseyes without using the <em>Juuji-sen</em>) to endurance training on the day Maka shows up carrying an enormous iron fan.<sup><a href="#7n" id="7t" name="7t">[7]</a></sup> "Is that your mother's?" Kid blurts when he sees it.</p><p>"Yes," she says, glowing. "She gave it for me for my birthday."</p><p>"I thought your mother moved away," says Black Star.</p><p>"She left it with my Papa before she left," Maka says happily. Kid is surprised. Usually, any mention of her mother's absence puts Maka in a terrible mood. It's a mark of how happy she is that she doesn't bat an eye. "Look—"</p><p>She pulls the <em>tessen</em> from its case on her back and snaps it open. "See the seals?" she says, and indeed, decorating the lacquered paper are lines of calligraphy that run down each blade of the fan. "They have <em>kunai</em><sup><a href="#8n" id="8t" name="8t">[8]</a></sup> in them, look!"</p><p>She has the wisdom to point the fan toward the established targets on the training grounds and away from her teammates, but she fails to check for anyone else in her enthusiasm. When she activates the summoning seals, the promised knives fling themselves from her fan in a great puff of smoke.</p><p>"Miss Albarn," calls an exhausted voice from the targets. "If you must assassinate me, please try to be more subtle."</p><p>Maka's beaming smile freezes. "C-Captain Stein?"</p><p>"Come collect your <em>kunai</em>," the captain replies, emerging from the smoke looking uncharacteristically solemn in place of his customary boredom. "Boys, run a lap around the village. Miss Albarn will learn the consequences of using that fan on her own."</p><p>"Yes, sir," Kid says, and drags Black Star away before the other boy can protest.</p><p>"I've never seen Captain Stein so angry," Black Star says later, as they are passing the Nakatsukasa compound.</p><p>"Maka accidentally attacked him," says Kid. "I'd be mad, too."</p><p>"It was an <em>accident</em>."</p><p>"It still could have killed him." Kid sighs. "I hope she isn't too upset."</p><p>Black Star gives him an odd look. "I'm confused. Whose side are you on?"</p><p>Kid returns the look. "What sides?"</p><p>"You were talking like it was Maka's fault," Black Star replies, "but now you're hoping she's not upset? It sounded like you thought she deserves to get yelled at or whatever."</p><p>Kid frowns. "It <em>was</em> Maka's fault," he says. "She almost killed our teacher. Or, not almost, I'm pretty sure Captain Stein can react to anything a genin throws at him, but she still put him in danger. She'd have to be stupid to not be upset about that. And I don't think Captain Stein is yelling at her. He doesn't need to."</p><p>"Why'd he tell us to get out of the way, then?"</p><p>Kid shrugs. "Why does Captain Stein make me meditate alone once a month?" he asks. "I dunno."</p>
<hr/><p>On his fourteenth birthday, Soul finally works up the nerve to ask Captain Albarn if he can spar with his teammates. To his surprise, Captain Albarn agrees.</p><p>"You can start today with Miss Liz," the captain informs him.</p><p>Soul privately thinks that this is a horrible mistake, because Liz is way more vicious than Tsubaki. Also, he's pretty sure Tsubaki wouldn't count the number of times she beats Soul. She <em>definitely </em>wouldn't do it out loud to his face.</p><p>"Fifteen," says Liz, standing over Soul with a <em>kunai</em> pointed directly at his face. "You suck at this, Evans."</p><p>Soul scrambles to his feet. "You're faster than I'm used to," he says.</p><p>Liz lifts a skeptical brow. "I'm going slow just for you, Evans."</p><p>Soul grits his teeth and stands in a defensive position, the one Kid had taught him. It worked fine against Kid's sand-clones and other projectiles, but Liz moves completely differently. Soul doesn't know how to guard against her when she can close the distance between them so <em>quickly</em>.</p><p>"Thirty-three," says Liz, half an hour later, this time pinning Soul to the ground with a foot on his shoulder. "Are you <em>sure</em> you don't want to take a break?"</p><p>Soul shakes his head as she removes her foot. He rolls onto his stomach and tries to push himself to his feet, but his arms refuse to hold his weight, trembling. He's never pushed himself this hard before, but he doesn't know if or when he'll ever get the chance to spar with someone other than Kid. He's starting to think Kid has been lying about Soul getting better.</p><p>"Too bad," Liz sighs. She grabs him by an elbow and hoists him to his feet effortlessly. "What have you been <em>doing</em> this past year? I know Captain Albarn didn't let you train with us, but this is ridiculous."</p><p>Soul doesn't answer. He just jerks his arm out of Liz's grip to take up his defensive position again.</p><p>Liz sighs and vanishes from Soul's wavering vision. The next thing he knows, he is flat on his back again, lying spread-eagled in the sand. "Thirty-four," she says.</p><p>Soul throws his arms over his face and tries very hard not to cry. For the first time, he thinks he understands the way Kid cries with anger. He desperately needs to <em>improve</em>, but he has no idea what he's doing wrong, and Liz isn't about to tell him. The frustration mixes with a hovering terror that he will always be this way: weak and useless.</p><p>"What are you doing?"</p><p>Captain Albarn's tone is disapproving, like it always is. Soul wants to scream or maybe throw something at the man, but he refuses to cry, and if he moves at all, he will.</p><p>"We're taking a break," Liz says. Her voice is surprisingly close.</p><p>"You swept Evans's legs from under him and then sat down next to him," says Captain Albarn.</p><p>"No," says Liz, "we're <em>taking a break</em>. And then we're going to lunch."</p><p>"Training isn't over."</p><p>"Yes it is, old man," Liz snaps. "I'm not about to kill my teammate because you have some weird stupid grudge against him."</p><p>"I do not—"</p><p>"Yes, you do," Soul snaps. Then, instead of bursting into tears, he turns into a scythe with an enormous puff of smoke.</p><p>"Substitution technique?" Liz says, baffled, as the smoke clears. "I didn't know we could do that with anything but dirt clods. Does he have these lying around his fancy house or something?"</p><p>Captain Albarn's gaze is unreadable. "Transformation technique," he corrects. "Miss Tsubaki?"</p><p>Tsubaki slides out of the captain's shadow, literally, rising from the ground to step out onto the sand. "Yes, sir?"</p><p>"Take a break," he says kindly. "And take care of your teammates. I need to go catch lunch with my darling daughter." That explained the leniency.</p><p>Then the captain nudges Soul with his <em>boot</em>, and any progress Soul had made towards reversing the transformation is completely undone by his indignation. "You can't run away from your problems forever, brat," Captain Albarn says, trying to sound wise, but just angering Soul even more. Then, to add insult to injury, the captain forms a simple seal with his hands and vanishes in a puff of smoke of his own, which Soul <em>still cannot do</em>.</p><p>"<em>Transformation?</em>" Liz repeats. She pokes Soul, too, but with her finger instead of a stinking boot. "A <em>spontaneous, full-body transformation</em> into an <em>elaborate, decorative scythe?</em> How? <em>Why?</em>"</p><p>"He's never stood up to Captain Albarn before," Tsubaki says quietly. "Nor has he transformed in front of us, but Captain Albarn didn't seem surprised about that, either."</p><p>Liz frowns and pokes Soul again. "Keeping secrets?" she asks. "C'mon, Evans. Why were you keeping something as useful as <em>this </em>a secret?"</p><p>"I don't think he can answer you right now," Tsubaki says. Soul feels a rush of gratitude for her.</p><p>Liz groans and flops onto her back. One of her arms comes smacking across Soul's scythe handle. "<em>Ugh</em>. Fine. But hurry up and change back, okay, Evans? I'm meeting Patty's team, and you two need to come along. I mean, I <em>guess</em> we could just bring you in anyway, but you won't be able to eat."</p><p>Soul manages to sort out his chakra situation and transform back in another puff of smoke. "Please don't drag me around in my scythe form," he says, nudging Liz's arm off his stomach.</p><p>Liz grins at him. "You just wanted to eat with us." She bounces to her feet, shakes the sand out of her loose hair, and extends a hand to Soul. "C'mon! I made a promise, and I intend to keep it, birthday boy."</p><p>Soul blinks at her. "How did you know it's my birthday?" He asks, taking her hand</p><p>Liz rolls her eyes as she pulls him to his feet. "Your weirdo brother asked me to look after you."</p><p>Soul freezes. "He what?"</p><p>Liz rolls her eyes again. "You rich people are stupid. Or maybe big brothers are stupid? I dunno, something makes you— them?— completely useless when it comes to baby siblings. Anyway, I'm adopting both of you."</p><p>Her declaration hangs in the air for a silent beat. Finally, Tsubaki says, "I'm older than you."</p><p>"Yeah," Liz says patiently, "but you're still a little sister. That makes you a baby."</p><p>Soul surprises himself by laughing. "I don't think that's how adoption works," he tells Liz.</p><p>"Too bad," she says breezily. "C'mon, birthday boy, I wanna see who scares you more, me or Patty."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p><a href="#3t" id="3n" name="3n">[3]</a> <em>obentou</em> (お弁当) - bento, spelled phonetically because I am [flips hair] Extra™.<br/><a href="#4t" id="4n" name="4n">[4]</a> <em>oicho-kabu</em> (おいちょかぶ) - a traditional Japanese card game, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oicho-Kabu">according to Wikipedia</a>. In this fic it's mostly an excuse for Liz to rob Tsubaki blind tbh.<br/><a href="#5t" id="5n" name="5n">[5]</a> <em>hen'iro-ryuu</em> - a Japanese translation of the name of a card game known in Chinese as <em>bianse-long</em> (变色龙), which I've spent about an hour scouring the Internet for to no result. (i just... really like card games ok shhhh.) It plays similarly to Crazy Eights or Uno with a regular playing deck, with two key differences:<br/>First, the goal of the game to bench the least number of points among all players (as opposed to emptying your hand first, which the mechanics do not allow). When unable to play a card, you must instead bench a card in your hand before drawing a new card. The benched card cannot be played for the remainder of the game, and the point-value of the card contributes to your score at the end of the game.<br/>Second, when playing the same number of a different (or the same, if you're using multiple decks) suit, you can call a new suit into play. For example, if you play a 4♦ over another 4 but call ♥, the next player must play ♥ and not ♦.<br/><a href="#6t" id="6n" name="6n">[6]</a> <em>omurice</em> (オムライス) - lit. <em>omelette rice</em>. It's an omelette... on fried rice..... usually topped with ketchup, as Maka has so kindly done for Spirit :). Fanciness levels vary, but it's mostly a kid's dish.<br/><a href="#7t" id="7n" name="7n">[7]</a> an enormous iron fan - based off of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_war_fan">Japanese war fans</a>, or <em>tessen</em> (鉄扇, lit. <em>iron fan</em>), and specifically inspired by <a href="https://naruto.fandom.com/wiki/Temari#Appearance">Temari's fan</a> of Naruto canon. It's earned a footnote primarily because it was called a <em>tessen</em> in the prequel to this fic, Believe It!<br/><a href="#8t" id="8n" name="8n">[8]</a> <em>kunai</em> (苦無) - originally a gardening tool similar to a trowel, but is so strongly associated with ninja (and often represented as a throwing knife) that <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kunai">Wikipedia</a> no longer bothers showing an image of the original tool. Whoops.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chuunin Exams.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Disclaimer: I have no actual knowledge of how well-centric infrastructural planning works, I just needed a potentially unrealistic density of dry wells.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Kid wakes with an impending sense of doom that takes him a while to place. When he does, he immediately feels like going for a scream, and so he does.</p>
<p>Soul doesn't show up. He rarely wanders the grove in the mornings, when Team Albarn is scheduled to have one of the training grounds. Kid tries to remember the last time they met. A month ago? Two? He's surprised and a little put out. It's a little inevitable: Soul has been dropping by less and less as he's gotten more and more familiar with his teammates. Kid is happy for his friend, but he still misses Soul.</p>
<p>He forces himself to leave the Evans grove half an hour later. He does feel better, mostly, except for how the dread gets stronger with every step he takes. He doesn't have time to get the rest of his nerves out, though: he has to meet his team.</p>
<p>He arrives at the Albarn residence within ten minutes, knocking on the door of a neat, modest little house. It's a convenient location, just two streets away from the main street that runs down the center of their town, though it is a surprising distance from the Academy and the ninja families that tend to live in the area.</p>
<p>Maka opens the door. "Morning, Kid— Are you okay?"</p>
<p>"No," Kid mutters, sidling past her into the little <em>genkan</em><sup><a href="#9n" id="9t" name="9t">[9]</a></sup> as she closes the door behind him. "Is Black Star here yet?"</p>
<p>"Heck yeah!" Black Star calls. The words sound garbled: he's probably stuffing his mouth and didn't bother emptying it.</p>
<p>Maka must think the same, because she immediately shouts for Black Star to not talk with his mouth full even though she's still standing behind Kid.</p>
<p>"You look terrible," she adds to Kid. "Talk to us."</p>
<p>"There's nothing to talk about," Kid bites out in precise syllables. "Where's Captain Stein?" He steps out of his boots and up onto the raised floors of the tidy little home, leaving his footwear in the <em>genkan</em> as he makes his way to the breakfast table.</p>
<p>"Papa won't let him in the house," Maka answers, rolling her eyes. "Something about how he doesn't want Captain Stein to learn the layout. I get it, you know," she adds as they step into the kitchen, where Black Star is already seated at a low table and slurping at a bowl of ramen. She takes the cushion beside Black Star. "This is a big deal."</p>
<p>Black Star looks up at that, first at Kid, and then at Maka. He swallows his mouthful of noodles. "Wait, what's wrong?"</p>
<p>"Nothing," Kid says.</p>
<p>"That doesn't sound like nothing," Black Star observes. He promptly ruins the moment of insight by slurping loudly at his broth.</p>
<p>"It's the exam, isn't it?" Maka asks.</p>
<p>"It's <em>international</em>," Kid bursts. "We're hosting an <em>international</em> exam with participants from a country we have, historically, <em>not gotten along with</em>."</p>
<p>Maka nods and shoves a slice of <em>tamagoyaki</em><sup><a href="#10n" id="10t" name="10t">[10]</a></sup> into Kid's mouth. "We've been at peace with Yuurei for decades now," she points out. "At least we're not competing with Mahou ninja."</p>
<p>Kid manages to choke down the scrambled egg without actually choking. "They'll still be watching <em>me</em>," he says. <em>Because of my father,</em> he does not say, but he doesn't have to.</p>
<p>"And <em>we're</em> on your team," Maka points out.</p>
<p>Kid stares at her, and then at Black Star, aghast. "Why would you give me <em>more things to worry about</em>."</p>
<p>Maka shoves another slice of <em>tamagoyaki</em> into Kid's mouth. "Just wanted to make sure you had the full picture," she says, grinning.</p>
<p>Black Star puts down his ramen, burps loudly, and ignores the face Maka makes at the sound. "What are you even worrying <em>for</em>?" he asks Kid, and he sounds truly baffled. "Does it make you a better ninja?"</p>
<p>Kid digests that one. "No," he admits. "But I can't just <em>stop</em> worrying, either."</p>
<p>Black Star shakes his head. "If you say so."</p>
<p>"It's just one day," says Maka.</p>
<p>"One week," Kid corrects, feeling betrayed. Maka is usually more informed than this.</p>
<p>"It's just one week, then," she says firmly. "And I bet when we're actually <em>taking</em> the exam, we won't have time to worry."</p>
<p>Kid scoffs his doubt.</p>
<p>"If you do," says Black Star, "that just means it's an easy exam."</p>
<p>Kid startles himself by laughing. The knot in his chest feels looser as he grins at his teammates. "I guess so."</p><hr/>
<p>Team Albarn goes directly from a light morning session to the starting location of the first stage of the Chuunin Exams, where Captain Albarn wishes them luck before leaving them with the crowd of other chuunin-hopefuls on the southern lip of the canyon, overlooking the village. Liz spots Patty and immediately drags everyone over for a chat.</p>
<p>Patty doesn't scare Soul the way Liz does, but the younger Thompson is overwhelming in a way that Liz isn't. Watching them makes him feel weirdly nostalgic, or maybe just envious: they make him wish he and Wes were half as close.</p>
<p>Eventually, they are interrupted by the striking of a gong. As the deep reverberation fades from Soul's bones, two <em>kunoichi</em><sup><a href="#11n" id="11t" name="11t">[11]</a></sup> in flak jackets call for attention.</p>
<p>The first to speak has the familiar symbol of the country of Tamashi engraved on her forehead protector. "Welcome to the first stage of the first collaborative Chuunin Exams," she says into the silence. "You will be demonstrating your flexibility and survival skills for us over the next twenty-four hours. Teamwork will be key."</p>
<p>"We will be providing one map to each team to guide you to the scrolls. You must retrieve at least one scroll," the woman beside her says. Her forehead protector is marked with the horizontal lines of her country, Yuurei. "Each map points to different scrolls, some nearby, some scattered quite far. The scrolls indicated by your map are randomly selected. Scrolls such as these—" she lifts a slim, red-trimmed scroll so that it is upright and clearly visible to the crowd— "will allow one of your team to pass into the second stage of the exams."</p>
<p>"But not all scrolls are created equal," the first woman informs them. "You are rewarded for venturing into the desert. The further you go, the more likely it is that you will be rewarded with one of these." She raises another scroll, identical to her counterpart's, except that it is trimmed in blue. "These are <em>san</em>-scrolls. They will pass your entire team to the second stage if you successfully retrieve one. You may also find <em>ni</em>-scrolls, which will pass only two of your team. You will know them when you see them."</p>
<p>"The desert is dangerous," says Yuurei's ninja. "In addition to maps, we will also be providing emergency flares. Using these will disqualify you from the exam, but keep in mind that being dead will also disqualify you from the exam. Better to suffer indignity than to lose your life… or the life of one of your teammates."</p>
<p>"I could not put that better myself," Tamashi's ninja agrees. "Now, the two of us will be distributing maps and flares to genin teams of the other's countries. Please select one member of your team to send to us. The official timer begins when the last map is distributed."</p>
<p>"I'll go," Tsubaki murmurs, and slips away.</p>
<p>Liz's eyes are narrowed in thought. "I'll go, too," she says. "I have an idea."</p>
<p>Patty grins at her own team. "See you in a bit," she says, and slips away, leaving Soul alone with her teammates.</p>
<p>They've met before, but Soul has never spoken to them on his own. "Um," he starts, but he has nothing to say. The girl, Jacqueline, doesn't even look at him. The boy, Harvar, shoots him a look, and then goes back to watching Patty navigate the crowd around them.</p>
<p>"It's so <em>hot </em>here!" someone exclaims, and the next thing Soul knows, there is an unknown girl's arm slung over his shoulder. "What do you all do to keep cool?"</p>
<p>Soul splutters and tries very hard to keep the stranger's long, dark hair from invading his mouth. </p>
<p>Jacqueline comes to the rescue. "Who are you?" she asks.</p>
<p>"Oops," says the stranger, tapping at her head with a careless fist. Her hair glints purple under the sun. "Blair is sooooo sorry! She just wanted to make friends, y'know? She's never left Yuurei before. It's <em>never</em> this hot there."</p>
<p>"Trees," Soul mumbles.</p>
<p>"What do you want?" Jacqueline asks. She is frowning, but her mouth is twitching at the corners.</p>
<p>Blair bats her eyes. "Blair just thought—"</p>
<p>"Cut the cutesy talk," Harvar says.</p>
<p>Jacqueline digs an elbow into his side. "Ignore the dumbass," she tells Blair.</p>
<p>Blair beams at her. "Thanks, cutie!"</p>
<p>"Soul?" Tsubaki has returned. "Who's this?"</p>
<p>Blair blinks. "Ooh, a girlfriend?" she chirps. "That's adorable!"</p>
<p>"We're teammates," Soul corrects.</p>
<p>Blair tilts her head. "Does Tamashi have four-man teams?" she asks, surprised. Liz and Patty are nowhere in sight.</p>
<p>"We do not," Tsubaki replies gracefully. "Soul and I are on one team; our third member is obtaining a map. The same applies to Jacqueline and Harvar." Her tone is perfectly polite, but something about her words puts Soul on edge. It takes him a moment to realize that Soul hasn't heard her speak this formally in years.</p>
<p>"Ohh," Blair cooes.</p>
<p>"You never answered Jackie's question," Harvar says. His eyes are fixed on Blair, unreadable behind dark glasses. "What <em>did</em> you want? I'm just asking! That's not rude!" he adds, fending off another elbow from Jacqueline.</p>
<p>"Oh…." Blair thinks for a moment, and then shrugs. "Blair forgot."</p>
<p>"We're back!" Liz says, bursting into their little circle with Patty at her heels. "Eater, you never told us you have a girlfriend!"</p>
<p>"I don't," Soul says, feeling his ears flush at the nickname. Patty had started it when she'd heard about Soul's first transformation from Liz (or rather, his first <em>de</em>transformation, specifically in front of his teammates).</p>
<p>Patty waves her rolled-up map. "We're gonna go figure this out!" she tells them, then sticks out her tongue at Liz. "Race you to the finish, sissy!"</p>
<p>Liz waves her away, still grinning. Tsubaki, however, is looking at Blair. "Please do not demean yourself," she says quietly. "You must be a very capable <em>kunoichi</em>, to have been brought all this way for your country. I would like if you told us the reason you approached Soul."</p>
<p>Blair blinks at her. "Blair likes you," she declares, a wicked grin stretching her mouth. She pats Soul's cheek as she finally releases him. "Sorry, pretty boy, Blair is stealing your teammate. Shall we?"</p>
<p>"No need to steal me," says Tsubaki. "Anything you say to me can be said to my teammates."</p>
<p>Blair laughs outright. "If you say so, pretty girl," she says, now snuggled up to Tsubaki. "Blair was thinking: This exam is about the alliance between our countries. Cooperation, that proctor of yours said. Or was it teamwork?" She ponders that for a moment, distracted.</p>
<p>"We're demonstrating teamwork," Liz quotes. Her grin is fading somewhat as she inspects this interloper.</p>
<p>"One of those words," Blair agrees. "But Blair thought: wouldn't an alliance between a Tamashi team and a Yuurei team give us bonus points?"</p>
<p>"That wasn't part of the explanation," Soul says.</p>
<p>Blair shakes her head. "Pretty boy isn't very clever, is he?" she says pityingly.</p>
<p>Liz snarls, her grin completely gone. "Take that back," she says.</p>
<p>Blair raises both hands. "Blair didn't mean to offend!"</p>
<p>"Soul is perfectly clever," Tsubaki says firmly. "He learns quickly. He just wasn't given the same experiences as most ninja our age." She smiles politely at Blair for a moment, letting the tension dissipate, before speaking again. "Thank you for your offer, Blair, but I think we'll pass."</p>
<p>Blair peels herself off of Tsubaki reluctantly. Soul is reminded of the way Wes's cat looks after a scolding, her ears flat and whiskers drooping. "Blair is sorry," she says humbly, directly to Soul, and slinks off.</p>
<p>Soul watches her go, feeling mostly ashamed but also strangely flattered by his teammates' quick defense. "Do you think she's right?" he asks his teammates. "About the bonus points. Don't worry about me—"</p>
<p>"The points aren't worth putting up with <em>that</em>," Liz hisses.</p>
<p>Tsubaki nods. "I don't like that she approached you and Patty's team while we were gone," she agrees. "For someone of her skill, it would be child's play to judge the cohesiveness of a team, and especially how comfortable they are with each other. That she thought you, Jackie, and Harv were a team, and then proceeded to talk about the importance of teamwork for the sake of a promotion…."</p>
<p>"Don't forget, she tried to separate Tsubaki from us," Liz says. "And then she had the nerve to insult you…." She hisses again, this time wordlessly.</p>
<p>Tsubaki smiles at Soul— a <em>real</em> smile, not the polite one she had offered to Blair. Soul can't help but smile back.</p><hr/>
<p>"Maka went to fetch a map and the flares," Black Star informs Kid when he returns to the crack in the side of the southern canyon wall. They'd passed it on their way up to the exam's starting location; Maka and Black Star together had convinced him to stay and wait by pointing out that at least the impression he made by not showing up would be better than the impression he might make if he passed out in public.</p>
<p>Kid hates it when his teammates are right.</p>
<p>Canyon cracks are narrow but deep, giving Kid plenty of room to pace as he waited. He'd been close enough to catch most of the instructions, but he still checks with Black Star to confirm the task. It's during this review that he notices something. "We still don't know where to bring the scrolls once we've found them."</p>
<p>Black Star gives him a look of dawning realization. "Oh, yeah. They never said."</p>
<p>"It'll be on the map," Kid says. "Or in a scroll?"</p>
<p>Maka finally finds them. "Bad news," she says, showing them the map. "Our scrolls are all far away and all in different directions. We can only go after one. If it's not a <em>san</em>-scroll, we'll be out of luck."</p>
<p>"That seems unfair," Kid grumbles.</p>
<p>Black Star rolls his eyes. "The faster we go, the faster we'll find out," he says. "C'mon. We need to cover as much ground as possible before the sun gets too strong."</p>
<p>They follow the canyon wall south until the starting location is out of sight, then continue until the sun rises and forces them to seek shelter in another crack in the canyon wall. Maka and Black Star, who are both blessed with the ability to sleep whenever they wants, take a nap; Kid sits cross-legged and meditates instead.</p>
<p>He is interrupted by a shout from above, somewhere on the canyon rim. He recognizes the sound immediately, even though he hasn't heard it in months, even though it sounds different when it's echoing across a canyon instead of being muffled by trees. <em>Soul</em>.</p>
<p>In a flurry of sand, he's out of the canyon-crevice and up on the canyon rim. He finds the elder Thompson sister first, dodging two assailants, which seems unfair until he realizes that Nakatsukasa is stuck in Thompson's shadow. Currently, she can only phase in and out of unmoving shadows; keeping Thompson on the move as they are is an effective way to keep Nakatsukasa out of the way.</p>
<p>Then Kid spots Soul, who is sprawled on the ground, a boy with Yuurei's forehead protector standing over him. He reacts before he can think, sending a wave of sand crashing into the boy.</p>
<p>"Moire!" screams one of the girls attacking Thompson, who takes the opportunity to stall just long enough for Tsubaki to finally leave her shadow.</p>
<p>"Retreat!" bellows the other girl.</p>
<p>"I don't think so," Kid snarls, shoving another wave of sand at them.</p>
<p>None of their three opponents emerge from his attacks. Kid glares, willing at least <em>one</em> of them to burrow out of the sand like the frogs they are. The longer they don't, the more his heartbeat slows from racing fury to pounding dread.</p>
<p>"I'm clearing the sand away," he tells Team Albarn through gritted teeth. "Be on guard." He shoves the sand back into the canyon, where he had pulled it from, but the three attackers are gone.</p>
<p>Thompson makes a muted shriek of rage. Kid would sympathize, except that with the threat gone, his vision is swimming.</p>
<p>"Kid!" Soul says, catching him. "Are you okay?"</p>
<p>"Fffffine," Kid pants. "Just… used… too much… chakra…."</p>
<p>Maka emerges from over the edge of the cliff. "Kid?" she says. "I saw the sand— oh." She eyes Soul warily. "You're… from the merchant house? Evans?"</p>
<p>Soul nods back, looking faintly nervous, but Nakatsukasa says, "Hi, Maka."</p>
<p>"Tsubaki," says Maka, relaxing immediately. </p>
<p>Kid pulls away from Soul. "I'm fine," he says. He's still light-headed, but he's not about to faint.</p>
<p>"Stop telling people you're fine when you're not," Maka says, exasperated. "I brought you your pack, dig out some leftovers. We might as well have lunch, anyway." She looks back at Nakatsukasa as she hands Kid's pack to him. "What happened?"</p>
<p>"A team from Yuurei attacked us," says Nakatsukasa, right as Thompson swears.</p>
<p>"My map," she says. "They took the spare."</p>
<p>"The spare?" Maka asks. "How did you get a spare? We were supposed to get one map per team!"</p>
<p>Thompson grins, sharply proud in spite of herself. "They didn't have a roster. I'm pretty sure we could have gotten away with one map each, but Soul didn't want to."</p>
<p>"And I would have stopped you if I'd known what you were doing," Nakatsukasa says virtuously.</p>
<p>Thompson's grin widens. "That's why I didn't tell you. It worked out, didn't it? We were heading to one of the scrolls on your map, anyway."</p>
<p>"<strong>Maka!</strong>" comes a bellow from below. "<strong>Kid! Where are you?!</strong>"</p>
<p>Maka's face flushes bright red. "<em><strong>Hush!</strong></em>" she bellows right back, disappearing over the canyon rim again.</p>
<p>Thompson is making a face. "Ugh. I forgot Black Star was on your team."</p>
<p>Kid looks at her. "You know him?"</p>
<p>"Who doesn't?" she asks. "We should move, quickly. If anyone looking to steal other maps or scrolls is in the area, they're <em>bound</em> to have heard that."</p>
<p>Kid looks up at the sun. "We were resting," he says. "We planned on sleeping through the hottest hours and picking up in the evening."</p>
<p>Thompson looks to Nakatsukasa. "Tsubaki was shading us with her <em>Kageshika</em>."<sup><a href="#12n" id="12t" name="12t">[12]</a></sup></p>
<p>Nakatsukasa shakes her head. "It was fine when we were just traveling, but I'd rather not be trapped in a shadow again," she says. "It was… unpleasant."</p>
<p>"I can seal us into the side of the canyon until we're ready to move again," Kid offers. "People won't know we're there unless they really go looking, and even then we'll have warning. <em>And</em> they'll only be expecting three, unless that Yuurei team warns them."</p>
<p>Thompson looks at him, then at Soul. "What do you think, Eater?"</p>
<p>Soul meets Kid's eyes. "I trust him," he says simply.</p><hr/>
<p>With the addition of Team Stein's map, there are only two marked scroll locations that are reachable within the eighteen-odd hours that remain. The information on the third map also confirms a suspicion that had been niggling at the back of Soul's mind.</p>
<p>"They're all located at old, dry wells," he says. "I mean, maybe not all of them? But definitely most of them."</p>
<p>Four ninja stare at him. Kid, who already knows the kind of history Soul studied as a child, only nods in acknowledgement. "Probably all of them," he agrees. "Wherever the scrolls are, it would make sense for them to be in similar places."</p>
<p>"Hey, Kid?" asks Black Star, who Soul remembers as their Academy class's loudmouth, though he doubts Black Star remembers him. "This Evans guy recognizes the locations of <em>wells</em> based on <em>three separate maps</em>. That's not normal. That's your level of file-snooping, and that is not normal."</p>
<p>"It may not be normal, but it's <em>impressive</em>," Liz says, awed, then catches the tail end of Black Star's words. "What do you mean, file-snooping?"</p>
<p>"Kid has access to a lot of files," says Maka Albarn. "We, uh, we think he went through <em>all</em> of them."</p>
<p>"I have gone through ten percent <em>at most</em>," Kid corrects. "Probably closer to two percent, frankly. I mostly try to keep up with ongoing mission files and active profiles. I did not manage to keep up with all of Yuurei's files, though I could probably recall the three that attacked you earlier if I thought hard enough."</p>
<p>Tsubaki gently clears her throat. "If they're all located at wells," she said, "is there a chance we can find a scroll that <em>isn't</em> marked for us?"</p>
<p>A thoughtful silence descends. "There aren't that many wells in the direction we've been moving," Soul finally says. "We'll have to leave the canyon if we want access to more."</p>
<p>Liz pushes Team Albarn's remaining map to Soul. "Can you mark out the ones you remember?"</p>
<p>He does, with a few question marks around where he can't remember exact coordinates.</p>
<p>"That is <em>so many wells</em>," Black Star says. "And they're all within a day's travel? All the wells we've stopped at on missions have been <em>days</em> apart."</p>
<p>"We move faster than caravans," Soul points out. "Also, these wells are dry. Some of them never had water to begin with: maybe someone wanted to build in the area, or wanted to get away from some other village, and they tried their luck. It's a big deal when there actually <em>is </em>enough water to sustain a population. The ones I recognized from the maps are from the past hundred years. I was never taught the older ones, but I assume that's what the ones I don't recognize are."</p>
<p>Maka Albarn leans forward. "Back to the exam," she says, eyes sparkling in a way that seems oddly familiar. "We're not guaranteed <em>san</em>-scrolls from the wells we have marked, but this is a good way to hunt for more if we need them, isn't it?"</p>
<p>Kid stands. "We can work that out on the way," he declares. "I'm going to remove the sand barrier, and we can be on our way."</p>
<p>Liz tenses. "Be careful," she says. "Even if nobody's found us, they could've set traps. The quieter the better."</p>
<p>"Tell that to Black Star," Kid says dryly.</p>
<p>"Hey, I <em>said </em>I'm sorry!"</p>
<p>"<em>Shhh!</em>"</p>
<p>Despite Liz's caution, or perhaps because of it, they don't encounter anyone in the four hours it takes for them to get to their first well, nor in the half-hour it takes for them to <em>find</em> the scroll, tucked behind a loose brick that Soul points out. He would have pried it out himself, too, if Maka Albarn hadn't spotted him and given him a lecture about proper weapons handling.</p>
<p>"We started learning grip technique in the first year of the Academy!" she grumbles as she works.</p>
<p>"I wasn't <em>in</em> the first year of the Academy," Soul mutters.</p>
<p>Maka looks suddenly ashamed. "Right. Merchants."</p>
<p>Another conversation that he's killed, he thinks gloomily, slumping against the unfinished wall of the well.</p>
<p>Then Maka surprises him by actually continuing the conversation. "Why did you transfer in, anyway?" she asks suddenly. "Usually it's only the ninja clans who attend the Academy."</p>
<p>Soul demonstrates. He's gotten a lot better at transforming over the past few months, though he still accidentally transforms his entire hand instead of just a few fingers. "The fully mastered form is a full-body weapon transformation," he explains. "Apparently I inherited my great-grandfather's bloodline limit, which people already suspected because of— because of my teeth." He stumbles over the words, surprised. He hadn't meant to say that.</p>
<p>"I was wondering about that!" Maka exclaims. She pauses in her efforts to turn around and stare at him. "They're so pointy!"</p>
<p>"People used to be scared of me," Soul admits quietly.</p>
<p>"What?" Maka says blankly. "But they're cool."</p>
<p>Soul laughs. "I don't think I've been called cool in my entire life," he says.</p>
<p>Maka snorts. "Whatever, coolguy." She turns back to the brick. "When did you transfer, again? I know it was pretty late, but…."</p>
<p>"Just for the last year of Academy," Soul replies.</p>
<p>Maka looks guiltier than ever. "I didn't know. —Oh! Then you only found out about your bloodline limit when you were, what, eleven?"</p>
<p>"A little before my eleventh birthday. I was in the grove with… my big brother?"</p>
<p>"You have a brother? I'm jealous. I've always wanted siblings."</p>
<p>"I think he yelled at our parents afterwards," Soul says, feeling a little dazed. He shakes his head. "Probably a dream. Evanses don't shout: we barter."</p>
<p>Maka snorts. "You sound like a merchant."</p>
<p>Soul feels his ears flush. "It got repeated a lot."</p>
<p>"So you shouted a lot?" Maka asks, grinning.</p>
<p>"No… yes." He hasn't thought about being the second Evans son in a very long time. The memories feel distant and foreign.</p>
<p>"Both," Maka suggests. She finally pries the brick out of the wall and frowns. "A <em>ni</em>-scroll. I hope one of your unmarked wells has a scroll, Soul."</p>
<p>Soul winces. "Me, too."</p><hr/>
<p>They make their way to the next well. Black Star and Liz Thompson are fully at one another's throats, held in check only by their respective teammates. Kid is briefly grateful that Soul and Maka seem to be getting along, but then Maka snaps a short "<em>No</em>" at Soul before stomping up to Kid.</p>
<p>"I don't want to talk about it," she sulks. A glance at Soul tells Kid that his friend has no idea what he's done wrong. Worse, Maka just adds to the bickering of their teammates.</p>
<p>The sun is a low orange glow in a reddening sky when they spot the next well; it is fully dark by the time they are in position to search it. The stars spill their subtle reds across the night sky, unimpeded by a new moon, a display that is glorious and grand and grossly unhelpful.</p>
<p>They decide that Maka has the best chances of spotting the scroll, which is embedded with just enough chakra that Maka can detect it with her <em>Juuji-sen</em>. To Kid's surprise, she asks Soul to accompany her search.</p>
<p>"His bloodline limit is pretty convenient," she explains. "He'll be able to feel in the dark way better than I can. It'll keep our injuries down."</p>
<p>Both teams agree, and so Maka and Soul descend into the well together.</p>
<p>That's when things start going wrong.</p>
<p>Kid is keeping Liz Thompson away from Black Star (and Nakatsukasa is doing the same for Black Star) when the ambush springs. Their attackers have extremely contrasting styles, evident even through the glimpses Kid catches in the darkness of night: one a hulking figure that tears up the ground with his ice techniques, the other a slight shadow who sets off miniature explosions.</p>
<p>Thompson counters the latter of these with exploding paper seals of her own. Kid plays defense: they have reached a sandier stretch of desert, giving him more to work with. His main restriction is his lack of sight; even with his knack for detecting chakra signatures, everyone is moving too quickly for him to reliably know where anyone is.</p>
<p>Tsubaki Nakatsukasa ends up carrying the bulk of their offense. Her bloodline limit allows her to manipulate shadows, and in the night, she has no shortage of supply. Within minutes, she has captured and restrained the bulkier of their assailants, though she does catch Black Star as well. Kid and Thompson regroup with the other two while Nakatsukasa frees Black Star, and the four of them hold strong against their remaining opponent's attacks.</p>
<p>Thompson and Nakatsukasa are discussing strategies for pinning the bomber down when a scream cuts through the night.</p>
<p>An emergency flare bursts out of the well, lighting the sky until it is almost as bright as day. Nakatsukasa's shadows die abruptly; Kid scrambles to replace the lost shadows with sand. With their captive re-secured, he checks on his allies, only to find that Black Star has vanished.</p>
<p>A familiar angry whoop echoes from the well. Liz Thompson leans over to get a look, her hands white on the well's ledge. Tsubaki recovers her shadows, though they are lesser than before, the endless darkness of the night reduced by the brightness of the flares.</p>
<p>The ground rumbles. Kid has just enough time to shove Liz out of the way before the well <em>explodes</em>.</p>
<p>Stone and sand crash into him. The last thing he remembers is the sight of black blood, stretching into the sky and blotting out the emergency flares.</p>
<p>Later, Maka will tell him about what happened in the well: about how their attacker bleeds out from the shadows of the well, and how Soul clumsily tries and fails to fend them off with a blade for an arm; about Soul's full-body transformation into a scythe, and how Maka tries to wield him to defend the both; about how the attacker's black blood cuts into the steel of the scythe, reducing Soul to a heavily-injured and unconscious human being. That was when Maka, screaming, set off her emergency flare. Nobody has figured out how or why the well exploded, other than to guess that one of the attackers had set it off.</p>
<p>Black Star is the one who tells him about what happens after that: about the golden chakra that bubbles from Kid's unconscious form, spiderlike for all that there are only three limbs; about how it effortlessly scatters the black blood; about how it turns on his teammates. </p><hr/>
<p>The first person Soul sees when he wakes up is Captain Albarn.</p>
<p>Soul's chakra is throbbing, sharp and steel, angrier than Soul has ever felt. It thrashes inside his skin, and for the first time in a long time, Soul is scared of himself.</p>
<p>Captain Albarn does nothing to calm him. He stands over the bed, his pale teal eyes narrowed and sharp, his face the particular shade of red that means he's annoyed.</p>
<p>Is he really going to be <em>angry</em> at Soul, even when Soul is trapped in a hospital bed, weighed down by his own, unresponsive body?</p>
<p>Captain Albarn opens his mouth. Nothing comes out. Soul wonders wildly if he's gone deaf, or if the world has stopped.</p>
<p>"Thank you."</p>
<p>Not deaf, then. The world might still have stopped, though. Did the captain just <em>thank</em> him?</p>
<p>Soul's ears burn with sympathetic embarrassment. He doesn't reply. He isn't convinced that he can, or that he's not in a very bizarre dream.</p>
<p>Captain Albarn clears his throat. "I was thinking," he says. "Your scythe transformation— it takes chakra to maintain, doesn't it?"</p>
<p>Soul tries to speak. His throat is too dry, sending him into a coughing fit that wracks his body and sends a jagged spear of pain across his entire torso.</p>
<p>Captain Albarn turns away. Soul wonders if maybe he's going to leave, but he just grabs a glass of water from the bedside stand and puts it to Soul's mouth when the coughing fit wanes.</p>
<p>This dream is getting weirder and weirder. Soul wishes it didn't hurt so much.</p>
<p>He drinks. It's awkward: Captain Albarn is very good about keeping the water from spilling on Soul's face, but he isn't tilting the glass enough, so Soul has to slurp a little. Still, he manages to get enough water down his throat to clear it.</p>
<p>Captain Albarn sets the glass back on the bedside stand. "Have you looked into chakra storage?" he asks.</p>
<p>Soul slowly shakes his head. He doesn't trust his throat just yet.</p>
<p>The captain sighs, an impatient sound that Soul has heard many times before. Then, for the first time, he catches himself. "When you're better," he says, "I'll take you to a specialist."</p>
<p>A knock on the door, and Captain Albarn excuses himself. A nurse takes his place, asking how Soul feels and checking on his bandages. His coughing fit had opened part of the wound; the nurse sighs and warns him about stitches.</p>
<p>Soul barely feels the pricking of the needle. He's too caught up wondering what in the world Captain Albarn was talking about, and then exhaustion swells and drags him into dreamless slumber.</p>
<p>The next person he sees is Wes, crammed into the tiny hospital seat beside Soul's bed, ankle on knee, with an open newspaper obscuring his torso and the bottom half of his face. It takes Wes longer to notice that Soul is awake, but when he does, he folds the newspaper without a second glance. "You're okay."</p>
<p>There is clear relief in Wes's voice. Soul is abruptly reminded that they haven't spoken in years, not since before Soul graduated and was assigned to his three-man team. "What happened?" Soul asks. His voice rasps out of his throat in a painful whisper.</p>
<p>Wes reaches for the glass of water. Soul lifts an arm to take it, but Wes presses his arm back into the bed and puts the glass against Soul's mouth himself. "You got hurt," Wes says. "The, ah." There's a worried crease across his brow. "The… Chuunin Exam was infiltrated by rogue ninja. You had a direct run-in with one of them."</p>
<p>Soul nudges the glass away with his nose. "A team of them," Soul corrects, remembering… a skinny figure, oozing like liquid from the darkness of the well; Maka Albarn, unable to pull out her giant fan in the limited space of the well; himself, trying to make do with an arm for a blade, until his nerves give in and he transforms entirely; Maka again, <em>twirling</em> him so much that he had to concentrate on not getting dizzy, though she was at least good enough to keep his extremities from scraping against the sides of the narrow well; black blood, coalescing into a sword and slicing into the steel of his body like he was nothing more than a rusted metal scrap; the blinding red of an emergency flare, calling for help, before he lost consciousness entirely.</p>
<p>His chest throbs. He suddenly remembers to breathe.</p>
<p>"Severe laceration across the torso," Wes says softly. "You'll have a nasty scar. It came with a lot of blood loss." He lifts a bandaged arm. "I was able to donate some of mine, thankfully."</p>
<p>Soul's eyes fix on the white bandages, jarringly pale against Wes's dark skin. His mouth is dry again. "I'm sorry."</p>
<p>Wes looks surprised. "Why?"</p>
<p>Soul has to remind himself to breathe. He wants to ask why he stopped running to Wes's room in the middle of the night, wants to ask why Wes had requested his team for their first mission, wants to ask how they've barely spoken in nearly a decade, two-thirds of Soul's life ago. He drags in a lungful of air, struggling against the sudden wrongness.</p>
<p>He is crying.</p>
<p>Wes stands. Soul turns away. He doesn't want to watch his brother leave.</p>
<p>Wes doesn't leave. Instead, he folds Soul into a hug.</p>
<p>It's a careful hug. Soul's shoulder presses into Wes's sternum. His chest twinges and aches but does not flare with pain.</p>
<p>Soul hates it. He remembers crying into Wes's shoulder, once, many times, a long time ago. <em>Cry</em>, Wes had told him. <em>If mom and dad won't let you, come find me.</em> His hugs had been tighter back then, fiercer, protective. Once upon a time, there had been no hesitation, no quiet distance; but it's there now, clogging Soul's throat and locking away all of the questions he wants to ask but can't anymore.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p><a href="#9t" id="9n" name="9n">[9]</a> <em>genkan</em> (玄関) - the entryway for a typical Japanese residential building. Distinct from non-Japanese entry halls for being a step lower than the main floor of the house; mostly provides a strict space for removing shoes.<br/><a href="#10t" id="10n" name="10n">[10]</a> <em>tamagoyaki</em> (卵焼き) - lit. <em>fried egg</em>. A type of Japanese omelette made by rolling together several layers of fried egg. Tends to be slightly sweet; is usually the egg used in egg sushi, as well as being a breakfast dish.<br/><a href="#11t" id="11n" name="11n">[11]</a> <em>kunoichi</em> (くノ一) - female ninja. The term is thought to be derived from the three strokes in the Japanese kanji for "woman" (女). (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kunoichi">Wikipedia</a>)<br/><a href="#12t" id="12n" name="12n">[12]</a> <em>Kageshika</em> (影鹿) - lit. <em>shadow stag</em>. The name of Tsubaki's bloodline limit.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Age: 16. Rank: B.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Kid looks his father directly in the eye, or as directly as he can with the customary mask of the Tamashikage obscuring his father's face. "I don't want this."</p><p>Lord Death looks gravely back. "I'm afraid you cannot refuse."</p><p>Kid stomps his foot like an eight-year-old child and is distantly appalled with himself. The stone floor under his foot reacts, rippling like water: Kid barely notices except to smooth it out. "Why?" he demands. "The exam was aborted. There shouldn't <em>be</em> any promotions. We even disqualified ourselves by <em>using a flare</em>."</p><p>"There are always promotions," his father says. "Passing the exam does not always happen according to spoken rules. We make exceptions all the time based on how we judge the capacities of our genin."</p><p>Kid crosses his arms. "What are my exceptions, then?"</p><p>"Do you need to ask?"</p><p>Kid is silent. No, he doesn't <em>need</em> to ask, but he still doesn't like what is happening.</p><p>The delegation from Yuurei had not been pleased with the infiltration of rogue ninja, and more specifically of the lack of security it demonstrated. Tamashi has in turn been displeased with the one-sided assignment of blame: if not for Yuurei, there would have been no such confusion. The rogue team had, after all, been registered as a Yuurei team, and had targeted two Tamashi teams. Moreover, their targets had all been high-profile: Kid, of course, was the son of the Tamashikage, but the Nakatsukasas were an old and well-respected family. Maka, too, may have been separated from the Albarn clan at large, but they would not have taken her death lightly. Potentially worse was Soul's family who, as merchants removed from the politics of the ninja world, would have brought uncomfortable outside attention. Chuunin promotions are a way of smoothing all this over and pretending like everything has run according to plan.</p><p>Kid's specific exception is tied to the attack and to what he had done— or rather, to what the Eight-Tailed Beast inside him had done. Kid has always had more chakra than his body can handle, and the Beast was the reason why. He'd been aware of the possibility of the Beast possessing him, but he'd never imagined that it would emerge in such politically fraught circumstances.</p><p>The official story is that a rogue ninja had possessed Kid and turned him against his teammates. However, Yuurei ninja had been present at the suppression of the Beast's chakra, and at least one of them was bound to recognize the truth and report back to their council. They would play nice— Yuurei values their relations with Tamashi too highly, and leaking the news would damage their hard-won trust— but Kid would be a target. Kid's promotion is meant as a statement of Kid's own power: a statement that Kid had been able to undermine and overpower the hypothetical ninja's possession; or, for those who know the truth, a statement that Kid himself had been in control the entire time, and had merely lashed out at the unfamiliar situation.</p><p>In other words, a whole lot of lying.</p><p>Kid hates it. Kid nearly killed five of his classmates and three captured rogue ninja, and definitely injured both of the jounin who were sent to retrieve him. Two of the rogue ninja had escaped in the chaos of his rampage: only one remains in Shinugakure, and they are a nervous and uncommunicative wreck thanks to his display of violence. He's not sure what sort of consequences he deserves, but a promotion shouldn't be on the table for someone who endangered so many people.</p><p>"You're not the only one being promoted," Lord Death says. "A genin from Yuurei has been selected, as well as another of ours, Kilik Rung. He was in your graduating class at the Academy as well."</p><p>Kid laughs, a hollow sound that cuts through his father's empty words. "Great," he says. "At least <em>someone</em> earned it."</p>
<hr/><p>On the day Soul is released from the hospital, Captain Albarn arrives to pick him up.</p><p>"I'm taking you to meet the chakra storage specialist I mentioned," the captain says. "Her name is Azusa Yumi. Grant her all the respect you can manage, Evans. She hasn't accepted a student yet, but it will be good for you to see what's possible."</p><p>"That wasn't a dream?" Soul blurts.</p><p>Captain Albarn scowls. "Why would it be?" he snaps.</p><p>Soul hesitates. <em>Because you've never paid attention to me,</em> he doesn't say. <em>All of your training has been directed for Tsubaki and Liz.</em> He's not bitter at his teammates; they know as well as he does how Captain Albarn has been ignoring him for years, and they have been doing their best to train with him anyway. It's Captain Albarn that he's suddenly furious with for deciding to be a teacher <em>now</em>, when he is almost comfortable with his mediocrity, when he could have used this kindness <em>three years ago</em>. "Because you don't care about me," he finally says, clipped and emotionless, because if he allows himself emotion now, he will scream.</p><p>Captain Albarn looks like he's swallowed a handful of tacks. "That is an unkind assessment," he says stiffly.</p><p>"But not untrue," Soul snaps back. Clearly, having a near-death experience has loosened his tongue.</p><p>If looks could kill, Captain Albarn's glare would have Soul back on death's doorstep. "I may have been… <em>unfair</em>… in my judgement of you," he says through gritted teeth.</p><p><em>No shit.</em> But Soul can't say anything without exploding, or maybe turning into a scythe, and he doesn't want to risk either.</p><p>Captain Albarn continues speaking. "To be frank," he sighs, "I assumed you would not last. I saw no point in continuing your training when you were just as likely to return to your family and become a merchant."</p><p>This assessment catches Soul so off-guard that he stares, jaw dropped, at his captain.</p><p>"I saw a boy who tried to cheat his way through the Academy," says Captain Albarn. His eyes are glaring at the road they walk. "I saw a boy who didn't care enough about his promotion to notice when he'd lost the symbol of his country. The work of a ninja is too difficult for a boy like that to last." His eyes soften to a distant sadness. "I didn't think… I didn't want to believe that a civilian could understand the importance of what we do."</p><p>"I'm not a civilian," Soul says. "I haven't been a civilian since…." He holds out his hand and lets the sharpness in his chakra turn his fingers to steel.</p><p>Captain Albarn watches. "Yes," he says. "You're right."</p><p>He doesn't say anything more. Soul doesn't, either, just pushes the sharpness down and away.</p><p>They arrive at a residential building on the edge of what is colloquially known as the Ninja District, where the clan compounds have given way to generic housing. Captain Albarn knocks on a plain wooden door set into uncolored sandstone, and they wait an uncomfortable ten seconds before the door opens to reveal a dark woman in a bright white cotton dust-mask.</p><p>"Mira," says Captain Albarn. "Is Azusa home?"</p><p>Mira's pale eyes flick from Captain Albarn to Soul. "Who's this?" she asks instead of answering.</p><p>"A student," says Captain Albarn. "I want to recommend him."</p><p>Mira snorts. "Better leave before Azusa sees you, then, Spirit. He'll make a better impression on his own than he will in your company."</p><p>Captain Albarn does not rise to the bait. "Of course," he says, and he sounds suddenly tired. "I'll… see myself out, then."</p><p>Soul starts to salute his departure by force of habit, but the woman in the door interrupts. "C'mon, then, boy," she says, opening the door wider to let him in.</p><p>Soul steps cautiously into the dark hallway. There is no <em>genkan</em> for him to leave his shoes in; he stands on the edge of a tiny rug as Mira closes the door, feeling awkward. "I, um. I believe I'm here to meet Azusa Yumi?"</p><p>Mira turns her pale eyes on him again. "It seems likely," she says after a moment. "You're the merchant boy, aren't you?"</p><p>"I'm a ninja," Soul snaps.</p><p>Mira nods. "What do you think, 'Zusa?"</p><p>"He's been a genin for three, four years," a new voice says. Soul stiffens: there is a cold calculation in that voice that reminds him unpleasantly of the Evans compound. "The fact that he's survived this long with that level of skill took some incredible luck."</p><p>Soul feels his ears burn. "I have good teammates," he says, turning to face the speaker.</p><p>"That would explain it."</p><p>"Boots off," Mira murmurs behind him. Soul fumbles to obey, staring at the woman who he can only assume is Azusa Yumi. She stares back. Her eyes are pitch black.</p><p>Soul is reminded of blood.</p><p>"Spirit neglected you," Azusa Yumi states.</p><p>"Yes.</p><p>"Have you seen combat?"</p><p>Soul hesitates. "Not before the exams."</p><p>The woman's mouth flattens. "He could have gotten you killed."</p><p>Soul shivers. This woman is ready to murder a man, he realizes. If Captain Albarn had stayed, he might not have survived this meeting unscathed. "There weren't supposed to be rogue ninja," he says feebly, feeling obligated to defend his captain no matter how much they disagree.</p><p>"There would have been no avoiding combat," Miz Azusa says. "Not in the exams. Who else is on your team? The Nakatsukasa girl? He probably wanted her to get a promotion. Hah! The ego of the larger houses."</p><p>"Tsubaki's not—"</p><p>"No, I'm sure she's not." Miz Azusa makes an impatient sound. A <em>kunai </em>grazes Soul's shoulder and pins him to the door by his shirt sleeve. Mira has mysteriously vanished. "Well, at least you don't have a flinch reflex to suppress," she says skeptically, striding toward him. "Was that natural, or did you train for that? Nevermind. He wouldn't have bothered sending you to me for genjutsu, so: what do you need chakra storage for?"</p>
<hr/><p>"Why are we here?" Kid asks aloud as he stares up at the restaurant's sign, which proudly proclaims itself the home of the best <em>okonomiyaki</em><sup><a href="#12n" id="12t" name="12t">[12]</a></sup> in town. His new flak jacket fits snugly on his torso, protective and stifling in equal measure, but he can't take it off until he's safely home.</p><p>"It's a class reunion," Maka says patiently. "It's been four years since we graduated, and now we have our first chuunin, so Liz thought it was about time. Apparently there's a birthday, too."</p><p>"Maka," Kid says.</p><p>Maka makes a face at him. "It's not <em>your</em> birthday," she points out.</p><p>"You know how I feel about…." He gestures at himself.</p><p>"You aren't the only chuunin," Maka says firmly. "Kilik's a good guy, friendly; if anyone asks about the promotion, they'll ask him first."</p><p>Kid makes the mistake of believing her. He finds out very quickly that she is wrong.</p><p>"Kid!" exclaims one Kimial Diehl the instant he steps into the restaurant. Her hair has been cut short since her Academy days, but it is the same bright shock of pink that hurts his eyes. "You made it! Come sit with us!" And she drags him off to the reserved dining room where the rest of their classmates are already chatting.</p><p>Maka, the traitor, doesn't stop her, just grins and follows. Behind her, Black Star catches his desperate glance and smirks.</p><p>He spends the evening picking at his food, wishing for one of Maka's homier <em>obentou</em>s. Diehl doesn't help, plastered as she is to Kid's side, attempting to ply him with a sugary fruit drink. "C'mon, enjoy yourself!" she coos. "You're the first chuunin in our year!"</p><p>"Kilik Rung is," he corrects stiffly. He takes the glass mug she is brandishing at him and sets it on his other side, away from Diehl.</p><p>"You're so humble," Diehl sighs.</p><p>"I'm really not," Kid says bluntly.</p><p>Liz Thompson lets herself into the dining room, dragging Soul behind her. Kid is surprised to realize that Soul is now taller than his teammate as he watches Thompson shove Soul into a seat of honor. The last time Kid had seen Soul, the latter had been unconscious in a hospital bed. It's good to see him up and about again.</p><p>"Attention!" Thompson roars, silencing the room. She lifts her drink, another fruity-looking glass that Kid suspects she has stolen from its owner. "To Eater's latest death-defying stunt," she declares, grinning fiendishly as Soul mashes his palms over his face. "Happy birthday, Eater!"</p><p>"I hate you, Liz," Soul replies, sounding very defeated.</p><p>Kid joins the toast with his preferred glass of water. He tries to approach, but then Thompson spots him, and there is terror in her eyes that sends his mood plummeting. She tries to hide her fear with a smile, but there is no mistaking it.</p><p>He retreats to sulk next to a very unsympathetic Black Star.</p><p>"Poor Kim," Black Star says. "Why don't you go back to her?"</p><p>"You're terrible," Kid tells him.</p><p>Black Star sticks out his tongue, unrepentant. "Go run to Maka, then."</p><p>"If I did that, Diehl would just drag me back into her corner," Kid points out. "And Maka, the traitor, would <em>let</em> her."</p><p>"She wouldn't," Black Star replies.</p><p>Kid frowns. "You don't still think she likes me, do you?" he asks.</p><p>Black Star doesn't get the chance to reply before Maka bulls over. "You look tired," she says shortly, shoving Kid's forehead protector into his hair and pressing their foreheads together.</p><p>"I <em>am</em> tired," Kid snaps. "I didn't want to come here in the first place." His stomach growls in mournful agreement that is thankfully lost to the ambient noise of the party. Kid opts not to inform Maka that he hasn't eaten very much tonight, but internally promises to make himself a bowl of <em>okayu</em><sup><a href="#13n" id="13t" name="13t">[13]</a></sup> when he gets home. What Maka doesn't know won't hurt her, and he <em>will</em> eat properly.</p><p>Maka takes pity on him. "Go home, then," she sighs, shoving him in the direction of the door. "I'll cover for you."</p><p>"Are you sure?" Kid asks. "I thought you wanted me to, I dunno, soak in the experience?"</p><p>Maka lifts a brow. "What, <em>now</em> you want to stay?"</p><p>Kid shakes his head. "No, you're right. Thanks."</p><p>Maka grins. "See you tomorrow, Kid," she says, and departs to run interference on Diehl.</p><p>Kid escapes the restaurant unmolested, and then his fatigue catches up with him. In the privacy of a quiet street, he allows himself to fold.</p><p>He places a hand on the sandstone bricks of the restaurant to steady himself. Their ragged edges are familiar: he's read about the quarries they came from, once upon a time, and the labor negotiations that it took to carve them from Shinugakure's canyon walls. He's still surprised at how rough they are. He wonders how callused the construction workers' hands had been.</p><p>He leans against the wall. He just needs a moment to gather his strength, and then he can go home and sneak leftovers from the kitchen.</p><p>"Crying again?"</p><p>"I don't cry," Kid says. He opens his eyes (he's more tired than he thought) and turns to face Soul.</p><p>"Uh-huh," Soul says, frowning. There's a faint shadow of a dot on his forehead. It takes Kid a moment to recognize what it denotes: a chakra-storage point. The technique looks like Azusa Yumi's, which is impressive for the patience and dedication it demands, but also because Yumi had no interest in an apprentice and even less interest in Soul's team captain.</p><p>Kid resists the urge to reach up and push back Soul's bangs, to get a better look at the mark. He also resists the urge to squish the corners of Soul's lips into a smile. He hasn't seen Soul since the Chuunin Exams half a year ago, though he's been haunting the Evans grove more than he has in a while. The idea of touching Soul now, with no trees to shield them from the winds of the canyon, feels strangely intimate.</p><p>As he's struggling to trace the root of this newfound shyness, Soul steps forward, pushes Kid's bangs up, and presses his forehead to Kid's.</p>
<hr/><p>Kid's head thuds into the brick wall behind him, and Soul steps back immediately. "S-sorry," he stammers. "I didn't think. My brother used to—" He jams the back of his hand against his mouth and looks away. His ears are bright red. "Sorry," he mumbles again. "You're running hot. You should, um. You should get some rest."</p><p>"Says the guy who looks like he hasn't slept in a week," Kid retorts. There's an oddly stilted tone in his voice that confuses Soul.</p><p>"Yeah, and I'm on my way to bed," he says. The words come out more caustic than he means for them to be.</p><p>Wind whistles into the silence between them, but sand steers clear of Soul's face. It always does when he's around Kid.</p><p>"We should catch up," he offers. "I haven't seen you in… since the Chuunin Exams."</p><p>Kid nods. "Maybe not in the middle of the night when we're both escaping a party, though," he says.</p><p>Soul throws a nervous glance over his shoulder, back toward the restaurant. "Right. I should go. Tsubaki helped me sneak out, but if Liz catches on she'll drag me back in."</p><p>"I can walk you to the Evans compound," Kid offers.</p><p>"If it's not too far out of the way," Soul says.</p><p>They set off into the night. The silence between them feels heavy despite the howling wind that fills it.</p><p>"So…" Soul says cautiously. "How have you been?"</p><p>"Fine," says Kid. He seems to realize how abrupt he sounds, because he continues after a beat. "Captain Stein has just introduced Maka to nature transformation technique. She's been trying to incorporate her wind nature into her fan for the past few days. The only person she can consistently use the attacks against has been Black Star."</p><p>Soul digests this new information with some surprise. "What are nature transformations?" he finally asks.</p><p>Kid launches into an explanation that takes them all the way back to the Evans compound. Soul manages to gather that all chakra has a latent elemental quality to it, though it takes an advanced level of control for a ninja to draw out their own elemental affinity.</p><p>"Is your sand-control a version of nature transformation?" Soul asks.</p><p>"Earth, yes," Kid confirms.</p><p>"And Maka has wind, and Black Star has lightning." Soul mulls over that. "So… she blows him away? That seems pretty obvious, even for them."</p><p>Kid groans. "Black Star still thinks she likes <em>me</em>," he says, disgusted. "I'm not the one who makes her blush when I run into her unexpectedly!"</p><p>"Liz is taking bets on when they'll get together," Soul says, grinning.</p><p>"Is there a bet on me locking them into a closet?" Kid asks. "There should be a bet on me locking them into a closet."</p><p>"I bet they'd break out before they figured anything out."</p><p>"A sand bubble, then."</p><p>"That seems excessive."</p><p>"<em>They</em> are excessive."</p><p>Soul can't deny that.</p><p>As they approach the corner of the Evans compound, a shadow comes soaring out from its roof, aimed directly at Soul. Kid catches it in a dollop of sand without thinking and finds himself in possession of a yowling and now sand-covered cat.</p><p>"Let me have her," Soul says hurriedly, and Kid drops the cat into his arms. "Hi, kitty. Did Wes lock you out of his rooms again?"</p><p>The cat glares balefully at Kid, but she stops hissing as Soul pets her.</p><p>"You have a cat?" Kid asks.</p><p>Soul shakes his head. "She's Wes's," he says. "The one we dug out of the grove on our first  mission. She likes finding me on my way home, don't you?" he adds, affectionately. She climbs out of his arms and up onto his shoulders, purring, batting her tail into Soul's face. "Rude kitty," he tells her, but reaches one hand up to scritch at her ears anyway.</p><p>Kid's stomach growls loudly. "Sorry about that," he says. His cheeks are flushed.</p><p>"You didn't eat?" Soul asks.</p><p>"I don't think <em>okonomiyaki</em> agrees with me," Kid admits. "I'm making <em>okayu</em> when I get home, if I have the energy."</p><p>"And if you don't?"</p><p>"Leftovers." Kid smiles and backs into the street. "See you around?"</p><p>"See you around," Soul agrees, smiling back.</p><p>"Good night, then. Happy birthday."</p><p>Soul blinks. "Thanks," he replies.</p><p>Kid vanishes around a corner before Soul can think to return his good night. Soul watches the spot he'd disappeared from for a moment, and then the cat bats his face with her tail again.</p><p>"I'm going, I'm going," he tells her.</p><p>It's not until he's in bed, the cat curled up beside his pillow, that he remembers that he has no idea when he'll next see Kid.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p><a href="#12t" id="12n" name="12n">[12]</a> <em>okonomiyaki</em> (お好み焼き) - lit. <em>fried as you like</em>. All the versatility of an omelette with a fraction of the egg-to-filling ratio, with many variants. The most famous batter is typically made of flour, grated nagaimo, water/dashi, eggs, and shredded cabbage (mostly shredded cabbage), on top of whatever you like, hence the name. Commonly topped with a sweet fermented sauce, seaweed flakes, bonito flakes, Japanese mayonnaise, and/or pickled ginger.<br/><a href="#13t" id="13n" name="13n">[13]</a> <em>okayu</em> (お粥) - Japanese congee.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Kidnapped.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Chapter warnings: One of the characters touches very briefly on passive suicidal ideation. Be careful.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Kid Death," says one of the strangers, a young man with long, dark hair.</p><p>It takes a moment of niggling familiarity for Kid to place him. "Nakatsukasa."</p><p>Tsubaki Nakatsukasa's older brother bats his eyes. "Aww, the baby monster recognizes me? I'm flattered."</p><p>"You're from the same village, of course he recognizes you," his companion sniffs, petulant.</p><p>Kid does in fact recognize the companion, though more through luck than through infamy. Gopher is not well-known even in his home country of Yuurei, even though he was exiled less than a month ago. He had been a member of an attempted coup, and notable only in that his exile was a direct result of his unrepentant praise of the coup leader rather than for any known actions. His presence tells Kid that the coup leader is somehow involved.</p><p>He's pretty sure he knows what the coup leader is after, too. Noah had a fairly high position in Yuurei's government before he had been ousted; he would be well aware of Kid's Beast.</p><p>Kid keeps all this to himself. Gopher does not need to know how informed he is.</p><p>He resists looking at his teammates. He wants to know if Maka, too, has recognized Masamune Nakatsukasa, but he cannot afford to look away from the two rogue ninja.</p><p>It takes him a moment to realize that he is wondering about the wrong teammate. Black Star would have no idea who these rogue ninja are, and should be as brash as usual, but he hasn't spoken a single word. The lack has the back of Kid's neck prickling in anticipation.</p><p>Black Star's banter never comes. Instead, Captain Stein presses a hand to the small of Kid's back. "Kid," he says, a warning and a prayer; and Kid feels the man's chakra stitch a message into the back of his shirt. <em>Let them take you. We'll get back-up.</em></p><p>Kid directs his chakra into his leg and stomps. The earth obliges: Kid sends himself flying in one direction and his team in another.</p><p>Both of the strangers come after him. "Did you think we would split up?" Masamune Nakatsukasa laughs. "What an unfortunate miscalculation."</p><p>Kid doesn't bother replying. He's too busy dispersing Captain Stein's message: it isn't visible, but he doesn't dare risk that Gopher or Noah or even Masamune might detect it, with or without genjutsu. He succeeds in dispersing the last of the Suture Ninja's chakra just before they knock him out.</p>
<hr/><p>Team Albarn is in the middle of a mission briefing with the Tamashikage when Captain Stein bursts into the office. Maka and Black Star trail after their captain, looking sullen. Soul waits for Kid to appear, too, but he is nowhere to be found.</p><p>The back of his neck prickles.</p><p>"Apologies," Captain Stein says curtly, bowing first to Captain Albarn, then lower to Lord Death. "Kid Death has been kidnapped, my lord. Two rogue ninja took him. One was Masamune Nakatsukasa."</p><p>Soul inhales sharply through his nose. Liz makes a sound of disbelief. Captain Albarn and Tsubaki are silent.</p><p>"I believe the other has affiliations with the attempted coup in Yuurei," Captain Stein continues. "Given that one of our opponents was a known S-rank rogue, and that the other was an unknown quantity, I opted to retreat. I was unable to stop them from taking Kid."</p><p>Lord Death regards Team Stein. He's wearing the customary mask of the Tamashikage, so that his face is obscured; his hands remain clasped behind his back, as they had been before the interruption. His body language betrays no tension, not even at the announcement that Kid is gone. "Thank you for your report," he finally says, and Soul is unnerved by how calm the man's voice is. "Report to the hospital for a physical examination. Dismissed."</p><p>"Your <em>son</em> has been <em>captured</em>," Maka blurts. Her hands are shaking fists at her sides. "Don't you<em> care</em>?"</p><p>Captain Stein places a massive hand on her head and drags her into a bow with him. "I apologize for my student's disrespect," he tells the floor. "We will rest and await further orders, sir."</p><p>Lord Death bows back with a slight incline of the head. "No need for apologies, Captain Stein," he replies. "Thank you, Miss Maka, for caring for my son."</p><p>Team Stein files out. (Black Star grabs Maka's wrist on the way out. Soul wonders if the gesture is restraining or supporting. Maybe both.)</p><p>Lord Death waits patiently for them to go before turning back to Team Albarn. "As I was saying," he continues, as if nothing had happened, "I need your team to investigate the Eibon Bluffs, Captain Albarn."</p><p>Soul stares at their Tamashikage. He's always wondered how such a cheerful, spontaneous man had spawned such a stressed, strict child. He thinks he understands, just a little bit, now that he's faced so bluntly with a man who shows not the faintest bit of concern that his son has been kidnapped.</p><p>It strikes him that perhaps Lord Death and his own parents aren't so different after all. Both care more for their jobs than for their children.</p><p>"Yes, sir, Lord Death," Captain Albarn replies dutifully, but there is a crease on his brow that isn't usually there: concern, Soul thinks, and perhaps even disgust. Captain Albarn never stops talking about his darling daughter: Soul can only imagine how he feels about Lord Death caring nothing for his missing child.</p><p>"I will have less restricted details sent to you within the week," Lord Death continues. "I expect deployment upon receipt; you may review the materials on the journey there. Good luck, Team Albarn. Dismissed."</p>
<hr/><p>Kid's memories of the next weeks are blurry at best.</p><p>The kidnappers travel primarily at dusk and dawn to avoid the scorching heat of the desert days and the biting cold of the nightly winds. Kid sleeps poorly no matter the time, and after the first time he is caught meditating, he doesn't dare pass the time that way, either. Despite his best efforts, his strength wanes.</p><p>Arguably worse than the sleep is the abysmal food. After so many years of Captain Stein and then Maka heckling him into eating (and further spoiling him with his favorite dishes), he's forgotten what it's like to exist on an empty stomach.</p><p>The pressure of two rogue ninja watching his every move does not help.</p><p>"Stop dragging your feet," Nakatsukasa snaps, not for the first time. "Noah's an impatient bastard."</p><p>Kid ignores him. He's not moving slowly enough that it's worth knocking him out and carrying his body, which is a line he's managed to find and toe over the past week. It is still a grueling pace, given the chakra-muffling iron shackles around his ankles that disrupt the flow of chakra to his feet, so that he cannot walk on the loose desert sand without sinking into it. (There are shackles on his wrists, too, but those impair his ability to use hand seals, not his ability to walk without tripping every few feet.)</p><p>In retrospect, he should have expected his body to fail him, sleep deprivation and latent iron deficiency catching up to him for the first time in a long time.</p><p>He wakes to a pounding headache and an iron-hard arm carrying him by the stomach. His head is dangling unsupported, adding to his nausea. He retches and falls to the ground.</p><p>"Dumbass," sniffs Gopher. "What if he wanted you to drop him so he could make a run for it?"</p><p>"He isn't running," Nakatsukasa points out. "Look at him. Besides, you really think he's stuck with us for days just to give up and turn tail now?"</p><p>"We've been watching him," Gopher says.</p><p>"The hell you have." Nakatsukasa nudges Kid with a dusty boot. "Get up, spider boy. We're almost there."</p><p>As promised, they arrive within the hour. Kid squints up at their destination, an ancient shrine in the process of being swallowed by a dune.</p><p>He's ushered into an enormous underground space that is cooler than the already swelling heat of the morning. The domed ceiling of the shrine stretches overhead, and even with sand flooding in from the dune-swallowed half of the shrine, there is an expanse of empty space around a sizeable nine-pillared pavilion at the shrine's center.</p><p>"<em>Finally</em>," comes a drawl from above. Kid lifts his eyes to the roof of the pavilion, upon which is perched a rogue ninja whom he <em>definitely</em> recognizes.</p><p>Noah of Yuurei (or rather, formerly of Yuurei) has not changed considerably since his report was compiled. He seems no worse for wear despite his exile, his boots pristine and his dark skin no darker despite having moved from forests to desert. The only difference is the ugly diagonal scratch through his forehead protector, and that he wears a scowl instead of a smug almost-smile.</p><p>Gopher is fluttering with delight and excuses. The reports had not lied about his devotion to his leader, except that they could not have prepared Kid for their intensity. "We've arrived, my lord Noah!"</p><p>"No shit," Noah sneers. "Took your damn time, too."</p><p>Gopher aims a kick at Kid. "It's the boy's fault, sir. Honestly, sir, I'm not sure how a weakling like him is harboring the Eight-Tailed."</p><p>"Don't damage him unnecessarily, Gopher," says Noah. "Nakatsukasa, report."</p><p>"The operation went smoothly," Nakatsukasa replies. "No resistance. They just ran."</p><p>Noah's frown deepens. "I thought he was with the Suture Ninja."</p><p>"He was, but Franken didn't bother fighting us."</p><p>"I don't blame him," Gopher says, sneering at Kid. "Unpleasant little brat. I bet he was happy to get rid of you."</p><p>Noah descends from the pavilion roof, sending Gopher into another paroxysm of delight. Noah ignores his follower, instead grasping Kid by the chin and forcing eye contact. Gopher makes a jealous sound that is frankly uncomfortable.</p><p>"He's incomplete," Noah declares after a moment, releasing Kid in disgust. "What the fuck is wrong with your Tailed Beast?"</p><p>How sloppy. Kid doesn't know exactly how many layers of security conceal the fact that he and his father have the Eight-Tailed split between them, but he's surprised that even a formerly high-ranking official like Noah doesn't know.</p><p>"It's atrophied," a new voice says. "Poor thing."</p><p>Noah rolls his eyes. "Do you really expect me to believe that, Arachne?"</p><p>Kid glances at the approaching woman. Then he takes a second look that turns into a stare, because he's seen this woman before, too, and not just in stolen files.</p><p>The woman meets his gaze. A self-satisfied smile curls the corners of her lips. "If you're accusing me of lying, you'll have to be more straightforward, Noah, dear."</p><p>It's been many years since Kid has heard that voice and seen that smile, but he cannot be mistaken. Staring him down, in apparent collaboration with his kidnapper, is his very own mother.</p>
<hr/><p>Soul has not had a good month. Between the news of Kid's kidnapping, the way Black Star and Maka Albarn had gone missing almost immediately after, and the fact that Team Albarn's latest mission had kept him away from the village for the <em>entire month</em>, Soul has been longing for his family's grove with a new fervor.</p><p>He's not sure that going to the grove would help, though. It's been a very long time since he's lost himself in those trees to cry, but even the thought of them summons memories of Kid.</p><p>Worse, the mission was a bust. A successful mission wouldn't have erased his stress, but at least it wouldn't bring back his feelings of uselessness. When they'd regrouped in their inn room last night to review their findings and discovered a whole lot of nothing, Soul had broken down and cried. It felt wrong without trees around him to muffle the sound.</p><p>At least Tsubaki and Liz were nice about it. Also, the way Captain Albarn had tiptoed around him this morning was pretty funny.</p><p>Soul has spent most of the past week pretending to be a <em>shuriken</em>.<sup><a href="#14n" id="14t" name="14t">[14]</a></sup> The shape of a throwing star is less familiar and more cramped than that of a scythe, but they'd needed him small and easy to conceal. He's made enormous progress in his year with Miz Azusa, able now to change the shape of his transformations as well as to hold them for hours on end. When he tells her about the mission, he'll try to be proud at the new record he set on an unfamiliar transformation, but for now he's hooked on the local pomegranates and wants to pick up as many as he can carry for the trip home. If he has leftovers when he gets back, he might even wheedle Wes into making trade arrangements and get them imported to Shinugakure. For now, though, he has to remember where they are as he shuffles through the street market, avoiding eye contact with the more aggressive vendors.</p><p>It's a thought that lasts right up until Soul makes direct eye contact with the supposedly-missing Maka Albarn.</p><p>She doesn't notice. Soul wants to blink or rub his eyes, just to make sure he's not seeing things, but he's been on too many stake-out missions to give in to the urge now. Instead he weaves through the bustle of the street until he is standing behind her, listening to her haggle with one of the vendors for a bag of (low-quality) dragonfruits.</p><p>"Maka?" he asks, incredulous, an instant before he is suddenly staggering into a gaggle of strangers. If not for his chakra armor (the latest of his ongoing assignments from Miz Azusa), he's certain he would have been knocked out. Even now, an electric numbness is radiating from his spine and making it difficult to stand.</p><p>"Calm down, Star," Maka says. "It's just Soul."</p><p>Oh. Oh, <em>wow</em>. Apparently he can take a punch from Black Star now. He can't wait to tell Miz Azusa.</p><p>Maka pulls Soul off the startled strangers, apologizing. He tries to keep his feet under him, but he can't quite feel his legs yet. (Fine, maybe he can't take a punch from Black Star and keep fighting, but he's still <em>conscious</em>, which is more than he ever expected.)</p><p>Maka helps him into a side street, out of the busy market, so he can sit without getting trampled. "How'd you find us?" she demands. "Ugh, I <em>told</em> Papa not to follow us! He has a <em>job</em>, he can't just run around willy-nilly."</p><p>"What, like you?" Soul says. He ignores the bit about her Papa, because he has no idea what she's talking about, and it doesn't sound like she wants him to comment on her complaints anyway. "I got sent here on a mission. We finished yesterday, and we're heading out tonight. Why are <em>you</em> here?" Hope seizes his heart. "Did you find Kid?"</p><p>Maka exchanges a glance with Black Star. "Sort of?" she says. "I… had a hunch, so I went looking."</p><p>"We've been living in libraries for weeks," Black Star informs Soul glumly.</p><p>"<em>I've</em> been living in libraries for weeks," Maka corrects. "Black Star got us kicked out of the first one and I had to promise he wouldn't be back before they let me in again. I didn't want to take the risk after that."</p><p>"You didn't find anything in that library anyway."</p><p>"Well, no, but don't act like I've been forcing you to read when you haven't even—"</p><p>"This hunch you've had," Soul interrupts. "Are you close?"</p><p>Maka lights up. "Yeah! There's—" She hesitates. "I mean. How much do you know about what happened during our first Chuunin Exams?"</p><p>Soul blinks. "The one that got canceled?" he asks. "Not much, I guess. We never found all the scrolls we needed—"</p><p>Maka shakes her head. "Not that, I mean— Do you remember about… Kid?"</p><p>"... He got promoted, right?"</p><p>Maka chews on her lower lip. Black Star rolls his eyes. "It's classified," he says bluntly.</p><p>"What, that Kid got <em>promoted</em>?"</p><p>"No!" Black Star looks impatient now. "The incident at the Chuunin Exams, and <em>especially</em> what Kid did— It's all classified."</p><p>They're talking in circles. Soul has no idea what they're talking about, and he thinks he knows why. "Then what are we talking about, exactly, and did it perchance happen <em>after I got cut in half?</em>" he asks sourly, gesturing at his chest.</p><p>Black Star blinks. "Oh. I, uh, kinda forgot about that."</p><p>"You forgot that I nearly died trying to keep your girlfriend safe."</p><p>"I don't have a girlfriend," says Black Star. "You nearly <em>died</em>?"</p><p>"Star," Maka says, whacking Black Star on the upper arm. "Be nice."</p><p>"I <em>am</em> being nice!"</p><p>"In his defense," Maka says to Soul, "Kid, um. Kid got really scary."</p><p>Soul is unimpressed. "Excuse me if I'm upset that he forgot that I— apparently I cannot stress this enough— he forgot that <em>I. Nearly. Died.</em>"</p><p>"Kid fought Ragnarok," Maka says, "and Kid <em>won</em>."</p><p>Just the name of their black-blooded attacker make Soul's torso twinge. "That's a good thing, isn't it?" he says, because he's pretty sure he's about to hear something that he really does not want to hear.</p><p>Maka grimaces. "He started attacking us. If the rescue squad hadn't showed up when they had, he probably would have killed all of us, too."</p><p>Soul knows many things about Kid, but this one is new. "<em>What?</em> He wouldn't—"</p><p>"It wasn't his fault," says Maka. "He wasn't in control."</p><p>Soul inhales carefully. "Okay," he says slowly. "And what does this have to do with him getting kidnapped? It's been, what, two years?"</p><p>"Two years that our team spent stuck in the village," Black Star says. "All of the missions were glorified guard duty."</p><p>"You say that like you noticed," Maka mutters.</p><p>Black Star rolls his eyes. "Like <em>you</em> weren't heels over head when we were assigned to guard that one actress."</p><p>"Head over heels," Maka corrects.</p><p>"That doesn't make any sense, heads are <em>always</em> over heels—"</p><p>"So you spent two years running local missions," Soul says, wondering how in the world Kid has managed to have these two for teammates without going insane.</p><p>"They want the thing that attacked us," Maka says. "The thing that took over Kid's body was powerful, and they want it." She grins, sudden and sharp, and the expression looks so familiar that it gives Soul a dizzying, uncomfortable feeling of déjà vu. "We're going to get him back before that happens."</p><p>"Whatever it is, I don't think we can leave it with the rogue ninja," Soul agrees.</p><p>Maka's grin dies suddenly. "Not just that," she says. "If we don't get to him in time… The process that removes the thing is fatal. If we don't get to Kid in time, he'll be dead."</p>
<hr/><p>"How is your connection with your poor, mangled Eight-Tailed?" Arachne asks as she approaches. She leaves no footprints in the shifting sand as she strides toward Kid and the endless line of enormous steel bars that bisects his mindscape. "Or should I say Three-Tailed?"</p><p>The sand rumbles, threatening to swallow Kid. Arachne is unfazed, though she does hoist Kid out of the sand and back onto his feet. From the other side of the bars, a voice grumbles, <em>"I may be a fragment, but I'm no dog, you b—"</em></p><p>"Please refrain from insulting my mother," Kid says. He turns to face the Tailed Beast.</p><p>The bars that separate them are spaced so widely apart that Kid could walk through them, arms out to either side, and not touch metal. Even so, they are dwarfed by the three enormous eyes that glare back down at him. <em>"Brat."</em></p><p>"She <em>is</em> the one who found this place," Kid says. "We should be grateful, Asura."</p><p><em>"No, <strong>you</strong> are grateful because she is the only reason you are not already dead,"</em> Asura corrects. <em>"It's the same to me whether I am here or gone."</em></p><p>"That's not what you said when you explained the extraction process," Kid tells him. "I believe you likened it to being a spider in a glass jar." He turns back to his mother. "How is the escape plan?"</p><p>Arachne smiles, as self-satisfied as ever. "It's coming along," she replies. "Don't worry, son." She vanishes on the spot.</p><p>Kid stares at the empty space left behind. It's unlike her to leave after such a short period in his mind.</p><p><em>"Noah,"</em> says Asura, and that is the only warning Kid gets before he, too, is ripped out of his mindscape.</p><p>"—<em> told you</em>," Arachne is hissing, "you cannot extract the Eight-Tailed as it currently exists in the boy! It would corrupt the machine—"</p><p>"I've decided I can take that risk," Noah replies. He is starkly calm compared to Arachne.</p><p>Kid is abruptly aware of his body, dangling from an arm carrying him carelessly by the waist. He struggles automatically to find his feet, only to be dumped unceremoniously on the ground face-first.</p><p>"This is a mistake," Arachne says as Kid rolls into a sitting position. His head is spinning.</p><p>"And strengthening the bond between the Eight-Tailed and its host isn't?" Noah replies. Shadowy ribbons wind around Kid's torso. "Please, do try to convince me again that letting you <em>train your son</em> will get me what I want. I'd love to hear your excuse for leaving out that detail."</p><p>"It wasn't important." The shadows are from the Nakatsukasa clan's jutsu, Kid realizes, too late to struggle. "You realize that if you do this, the machine will break! There is no one left alive who can fix it! I'm telling you, <em>he's not ready</em>."</p><p>"Nah," says Noah. "I think he is." The man nods, and Nakatsukasa's shadow jutsu slams Kid into a pillar, knocking the wind out of him. He dimly recognizes where he is now: the circular pavilion at the shrine's center, where he had first met Noah. This time, instead of standing outside it, he is bound to one of its pillars.</p><p>"You'll regret this," Arachne says lowly.</p><p>Noah smiles. It's the first time Kid has seen him so happy in the entire month he's been here. "You know what I won't regret? Wiping that smug little grin off your face." He turns away. "Gopher."</p><p>"Yes, sir!" Gopher chirps from somewhere out of sight.</p><p>The shadows binding Kid to the pillar vanish. They take Kid's chakra with them, robbing Kid of the ability to stand or move or <em>think</em>.</p><p>It takes him a long time to gather enough scraps of thought to understand what's happening. The shadows hadn't stolen Kid's chakra: it's the pillar itself that is swallowing any chakra it touches, Nakatsukasa's included. Presumably the rogue ninja had severed the connection to himself and is fine. Kid has no such assurance.</p><p>He's going to die here, he realizes. He is failing himself, failing all of his work, failing his teammates, failing everything he would have inherited. He feels again, with dull finality, that he is <em>too weak</em>.</p><p>His father had been right to keep him hidden away. He should have been satisfied with his lot in life. He should have stayed in the village, where he would have been safe.</p><p>Even as he has the thought, he is bitterly sad. Traveling had been one of his favorite parts of missions. He'd always loved learning, had always felt deeply the imperative <em>to learn</em>, and traveling had offered so much more than books had: the variations in slang, the architectural divergences, the mechanics of farming that none of the books had bothered to explain. Could he really have given that up forever? Or would he only have delayed the inevitable? Would Noah or some other Beast-seeking rogue ninja come for him anyway?</p><p>It doesn't matter much now. Kid closes his eyes and surrenders to his death.</p><p><em><strong>Brat,</strong></em> comes a hiss from inside him. <em><strong>Hold on a little longer.</strong></em></p><p><em>What's the point?</em> Kid wonders.</p><p>
  <em>
    <strong>Open your eyes and find out.</strong>
  </em>
</p><p>Obeying is the hardest thing Kid has ever done. His eyelids refuse to open. He almost gives up, except that the voice won't stop nagging him. Finally, he opens his eyes and looks.</p><p>The first thing he sees is Black Star's hair, moving so fast that it looks like a bright blue blur. It takes Kid minutes of empty staring to realize that Tsubaki Nakatsukasa is there, too, fighting her brother.</p><p>Movement from the corner of his eye: Kid tilts his head in its direction, unable to summon the energy to move any more than that. Maka is wielding a familiar scythe against Gopher, who has sprouted wings of chakra as if he, too, is host to a Tailed Beast.</p><p>He starts laughing. Every gasp of air robs more of his energy, but he can't stop, either. How very like his teammates to make a dramatic, last-minute entry.</p><p>Then, all at once, he is crying. Tears stream down his face; a sob wracks his body; a scream tears out of his throat.</p><p>Nobody notices. Nobody can hear him. He is absurdly grateful, even as helpless frustration swallows him whole. The emotion is agony, drawing more energy out of him than he can spare.</p><p><em><strong>Calm down,</strong></em> the Beast inside him hisses. <em><strong>You're eating into my chakra, brat.</strong></em></p><p><em>Too bad,</em> Kid thinks wildly. The fight outside the pavilion continues without him. Kid closes his eyes and waits for everything to be over.</p>
<hr/><p>"Baby girl!" Captain Albarn wails, wrapping Maka in a tearful hug. "I was so worried!"</p><p>Maka grumbles but consents to the hug, wrapping her own arms around the captain and burying her face in his shoulder. Soul is surprised by how close they are; Maka had seemed to dislike Captain Albarn intensely, back during the Chuunin Exam when he'd asked if they were related and had received a furious "<em>No</em>" in reply.</p><p>He makes this observation aloud to Liz, who gives him the most patronizing look he's seen in a while. "You are an <em>idiot</em>," she says curtly.</p><p>Soul is too exhausted to ask what she means. He doesn't want to distract her, either; she is busy working on disabling the seal that is trapping Kid in the pavilion.</p><p>With nothing better to do, he finds a clear-ish space in the shrine and meditates to assess his stores of chakra and, if possible, try to recover some. He'd already been depleted from their dud of a mission; remaining transformed for Maka to swing around had only emptied him more.</p><p>He emerges to the sound of Maka and Black Star bickering again. Kid is on the ground between them, slumped against their legs. Tear streaks make faint lines down Kid's face.</p><p>"You fought a <em>Beast Host</em>," Black Star is saying. "I'll carry him."</p><p>"<em>You</em> fought <em>Masamune Nakatsukasa</em>," Maka retorts, in a cadence that suggests that she is repeating herself.</p><p>"Tsubaki helped."</p><p>"So did Soul!"</p><p>Kid opens his eyes and spots Soul. They make eye contact, and then Kid rolls his eyes, slowly, with clear effort. Soul takes the hint and approaches the disaster duo.</p><p>"We can take him," he says.</p><p>"Why should you?" Maka demands, rounding on him.</p><p>Soul glances down at Kid, who is gazing at him with a look that borders on worshipful and directs all of Soul's blood into his ears. "You're both worn out from your unauthorized traveling," he says, looking back at Maka. "My team is still fresh. We can protect him."</p><p>"No," Liz yells at him. "Don't rope us into this one, Eater. You can carry your boyfriend all you want, but you're doing it alone."</p><p>Soul's ears burn hotter. "I'm not saying you have to carry him," he snaps, half-turning in his teammate's direction. "At least cover me?"</p><p>"Boyfriend?" Black Star repeats. "Kid has a <em>boyfriend</em>?"</p><p>The burning in Soul's ears leaks into his cheeks. "We're not dating," he mutters. "Liz is just… embarrassing."</p><p>"<em>Yet</em>," Tsubaki contributes. "Not dating <em>yet</em>."</p><p>"Bold of you to assume you're not embarrassing, too, Eater," Liz drawls.</p><p>"Don't mind Liz," says Tsubaki, with a particularly sweet note that has Soul feeling preemptively embarrassed. "We love you anyway. I'll help you carry Kid— that is, if Team Stein is all right with that?"</p><p>"We'll be traveling together anyway," Captain Albarn says, appearing at Maka's shoulder. Maka, who has apparently reverted to disliking the man again, just glares. "Don't look at me like that, missy. You've gotten your teammate back. It's time to come home."</p><p>"Fine," Maka says sulkily.</p><p>Soul looks back down at Kid. Their rescuee has closed his eyes, and looks so pale that Soul forgets for a moment that he's <em>alive</em>. He kneels and puts the back of his hand next to Kid's mouth, just to feel the other boy breathe.</p><p>"You really care about him, huh?" Black Star says.</p><p>Kid doesn't stir. Soul doesn't look up, either, just watches as Kid's breath warms the back of his fingers. "Yeah," he agrees after a moment. "Yeah, I do."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p><a href="#14t" id="14n" name="14n">[14]</a> <em>shuriken</em> (手裏剣) - lit. <em>hidden hand blade</em>, so, you know, fitting. Throwing stars.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Age: 18. Rank: A.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"He's busy," Kid says.</p><p>"Busy enough that he hasn't come to see <em>you</em>, his own son?" Maka demands.</p><p>Kid sighs. "He is the <em>Tamashikage</em>." Maka should know that, but sometimes she loses track of the most obvious things. "Congrats on your chuunin promotion, by the way."</p><p>Maka ignores the well-wishes. "Kid," she says slowly, as though he is missing something obvious, "you're his <em>son</em>."</p><p>Kid waits for her to expand on her point. She doesn't. "Yes," he finally says. "I know."</p><p>"You nearly <em>died</em>!" she yells at him.</p><p>"Yes," he repeats, this time annoyed. "I know."</p><p>"You nearly died and your own father cannot be bothered to even <em>check</em> on you!" Maka says.</p><p>"He is <em>busy</em>!" Kid retorts.</p><p>This is not the first time they have had this argument. Lord Death has not visited Kid for the duration of his hospital stay. Kid isn't worried: it's obvious to him that his father would prioritize the information management regarding Kid's disappearance and return.</p><p>This time, a nurse interrupts and escorts a furious Maka from the room.</p><p>It is Black Star, of all people, who lays it out for Kid. "She thinks everyone should be like her dad," he tells Kid the next day.</p><p>"She hates her dad," Kid says, baffled.</p><p>Black Star glances pointedly at the homemade lunchbox sitting on Kid's bedside table. "She sure does," he says dryly. "That's why she's spent one day every week making <em>obentou</em>s with him for the past <em>four years</em>."</p><p>Kid blinks. "She does that for us, doesn't she?"</p><p>"You <em>believe</em> her?" Black Star asks.</p><p>This is a surprisingly good point for someone who refuses to notice that Maka only ever blushes when he's around. "You should ask her out," Kid says.</p><p>Black Star gives him an odd look. "Ask who out?"</p><p>"Maka," Kid says impatiently.</p><p>Black Star perks up. "Where?"</p><p>Kid rolls his eyes. "No, idiot. <em>Ask Maka out.</em>"</p><p>Black Star deflates immediately. "No."</p><p>"She likes you back, you know."</p><p>"She does not." This statement is delivered with flat conviction. "She likes <em>you</em>, remember?"</p><p>Kid wants to shake his teammate. Actually, he wants to shake <em>both</em> his teammates, but Maka isn't here. He settles for groaning into his hands. "She respects me," he says, "just as I respect her. It is <em>vastly</em> different."</p><p>Black Star rolls his eyes. "What I'm hearing is, she likes you and not me." He is matter-of-fact about this, as unperturbed as if he were talking about the weather. Black Star doesn't hold grudges. Kid admires him for it.</p><p>Or he would, except that Black Star is being <em>extremely</em> stupid about <em>this in particular</em>. "Why do you think that?" Kid demands, dragging his hands down his face to glare at his teammate. "Did she tell you directly?"</p><p>"She told our entire class," Black Star says promptly. "Back when we were eight."</p><p>Kid stares at him. "Eight," he repeats, disbelieving. "She said this when we were <em>eight</em>, before we <em>ever spoke</em>, because I was too much of a disaster to attend half my classes, let alone talk to <em>anyone in our class</em>! Oh, and we were <em>eight</em>!"</p><p>Black Star shrugs. "All the girls liked you. Maka did, too."</p><p>"<em>We! Were! Eight!</em> The only one who still likes me is <em>Diehl</em> and I don't like <em>her</em> any more than I like Maka! Eh, romantically," Kid adds, because he definitely prefers Maka's company to Diehl's. Diehl makes him feel more like the son of the Tamashikage than like himself.</p><p>"Diehl isn't your teammate," Black Star points out.</p><p>"But Maka is yours!" Kid retorts. "Or have you missed that in the past <em>five years</em>."</p><p>"You didn't see what she was like when she was looking for you."</p><p>"We! Are! Teammates! She would have done the same for you!"</p><p>"She yelled at your dad for you," Black Star says.</p><p>That catches Kid off guard. "Oh. <em>Why?</em> Is this related to what you said about her and Captain Albarn?"</p><p>"She was <em>mad</em>," says Black Star. "She thinks you deserve better, and she thinks you should think so, too. Because she—"</p><p>"Do not say she likes me," Kid says flatly.</p><p>Black Star shrugs.</p><p>"I cannot help that my father is the Tamashikage and therefore responsible for all of us and our missions," Kid reminds him, because apparently everyone has forgotten that <em>being the Tamashikage</em> is Lord Death's primary job, and not looking after Kid specifically, who in any case is a legal adult as of… hm. He'd missed his birthday while he'd been gone.</p><p>In any case, Kid takes himself up to his father's office to make his full report as soon as he is dismissed from the hospital. "I do have a question," he says when he is done. "Maka and Black Star were looking for me, but how did Team Albarn get roped in?"</p><p>Lord Death stirs. "I had hopes that their mission would be related to your kidnappers," he says. "The mission report returned negative, but I didn't think it coincidence that they ran into Captain Stein's runaway team. I didn't know what the link was until you described your mother."</p><p>Kid stands straighter. "Then they found her? Where is she, by the way? I assumed she fought Noah—"</p><p>"The matron of the house they were investigating matched her description perfectly," Lord Death says. "She made no suspicious moves, but your mother is perfectly capable of using the shadow clone technique. It would not have been difficult for her to slip away from Team Albarn to see you while maintaining a clone to fool them. <em>Why</em> she is being so evasive is another matter…."</p><p>Kid broods over this news. She had regularly mentioned an escape plan, though she had been stingy on the details; he wonders if it is any coincidence that Teams Stein and Albarn had rescued him on the same day he would have died. Evasive indeed.</p><p>"I did not call you here for this," Lord Death finally says, and there is a new softness in his voice that catches Kid's attention. "I called you here to arrange our training sessions."</p><p>"You don't have time for those," Kid blurts.</p><p>"I am making time," Lord Death replies. "I've neglected you long enough."</p><p>Kid lifts his chin. "You are the Tamashikage," he reminds his father. "You owe more to the village than you do to me."</p><p>Lord Death shakes his head. "But I owe you this," he says. "It is time for you to learn senjutsu, and there is no one else who can teach you."</p><p>"Give me the theory," Kid says. "I can study."</p><p>"Senjutsu is not so easily learned," Lord Death replies.</p><p>"I am not going to waste the Tamashikage's time!"</p><p>Lord Death sighs. "You are one of my duties, too, Kid," he says. "Just as any family must pass down their bloodline limit, so too must I pass on the rest of the Eight-Tailed Beast. This is not about being the Tamashikage: this is about being a Beast Host."</p><p>Kid looks at his father, at the ever-present mask that hides his father's face, at the unbothered lines of his shoulders. "I never asked for this," he says. "I never asked for the Eight-Tailed Beast—"</p><p>"It's true, you never asked to be my son," Lord Death says. "But, Kid, that has never stopped you from trying to follow in my footsteps. I am ashamed to say that I may not have helped you enough."</p><p>"That's not fair," Kid says. "You are the Tamashikage."</p><p>"I'm your father, too," Lord Death says gently. "Let me help you. For as much time as I have left, Kid, let me be your father."</p><hr/><p>It's been two years since his lessons with Miss Azusa began, but Soul still feels a jittery excitement at having more of a role on Team Albarn beyond just permanent stake-out duty. He is horribly disappointed when, on their first A-rank mission, there is nothing for him to do <em>but</em> be on stake-out duty.</p><p>"It happens to all of us," Tsubaki says.</p><p>"It hasn't happened to <em>you</em>," Soul points out.</p><p>"It hasn't happened to me <em>yet</em>," Tsubaki says, unruffled. "And I know you don't believe it, but you really are the best at watching the target. Most of your transformation jobs are stake-outs, but with you positioned as close as we can get you to the target."</p><p>Soul groans. "Now I feel lame."</p><p>"It's not lame," Liz says. "I know it doesn't feel like much, but you are literally the only person I know who's allowed to sit on stake-outs alone, and that includes Patty's class."</p><p>"If you say so," Soul says dubiously. "I wish I could go with you two."</p><p>"Not unless you can turn into a hairpin," Liz says. "Or we could switch places and watch Captain Albarn lose his entire mind."</p><p>Soul shudders. "No thanks," he says quickly. "I'd accidentally spill tea on the matron within a day—"</p><p>"If tea-serving is on the plan, I will <em>also</em> accidentally spill tea on the matron," Liz reassures him.</p><p>"Please don't squander your etiquette classes like that, Miss Liz," Captain Albarn sighs as he slides into the seat beside Soul.</p><p>Liz pulls a face. "Please allow me to forget about those classes in peace, captain." Her expression shifts to a thoughtful one. "Actually, I'm pretty sure Soul would ace those classes—"</p><p>"But I can't act to save my life, so they'd be useless," Soul replies. "I'd be happy to be a hairpin if I could, by the way, but I haven't figured out how to be anything that doesn't have a sharp edge <em>somewhere</em>."</p><p>The four of them are back in Eibon Bluffs for this mission, which appears to be a repeat of the dud mission from the month Kid had been kidnapped. This time, they have been informed that the matron of the house, Arachne, is a ninja as well, and fully capable of changing her appearance to be unrecognizable. Last time, Liz was able to secure a job as gardener, and Soul had been a hand-scythe; this time, the only open positions are those of attendants, who are allowed no weapons inside the mansion. Soul, therefore, is stuck on exterior stake-out duty instead of interior snooping duty, but they still hope to catch her going places she shouldn't.</p><p>Which is all well and good, if also horribly boring. Soul is going to eat <em>so many</em> pomegranates.</p><hr/><p>Kid knows the theory of senjutsu: of the land's natural chakra, outside of humanity, which can be sensed and further controlled, but can just as easily overwhelm and crush.</p><p>"You've had some mastery over senjutsu for a long time," Lord Death tells him at the beginning of their first training session, on the north rim of the canyon overlooking Shinugakure. He is not wearing the mask of the Tamashikage, only the same forehead protector as all of Tamashi's ninja. "Natural chakra, specifically that of the earth, is the Eight-Tailed’s specialty."</p><p>"I thought senjutsu was dangerous," Kid says.</p><p>"It would have been," Lord Death agrees, "but you never tried to control it, only to sense it. Your sand techniques rely on regular nature transformations." He sits and pats the ground beside him. "Come. We'll work first on sensing natural chakra."</p><p>"I thought I could already do that," Kid says, even as he obeys.</p><p>"You've been able to sense natural chakra," Lord Death agrees, "but that doesn't mean you've been able to distinguish natural chakra from… well, from <em>my</em> chakra."</p><p>Kid frowns. "Your chakra?"</p><p>Lord Death is silent.</p><p>"Father—"</p><p>"Let me think," Lord Death replies. "This will not be easy for you to hear, but it is past time you know."</p><p>Kid nods, still frowning, but he waits quietly for his father to speak.</p><p>"You were a frail child," Lord Death begins. "We knew even before you were born that you would struggle. I resolved to pass the Eight-Tailed to you, in the hopes that he would strengthen you."</p><p>So far, this is nothing which Kid does not know. "I remember," he says.</p><p>Lord Death nods. "The transfer was not entirely successful. We could not be sure what would happen. Your half of the Eight-Tailed was stable, thankfully, but mine was not."</p><p>Kid feels cold. He'd known about the halving, of course; but he had not realized that his father had suffered more than just a loss of chakra. He'd thought he'd known the extent of the debts he had to repay; to find that there is an extra layer is like having a rug pulled from under his feet, revealing exactly how much he <em>hasn't</em> accomplished, and how much he has taken for granted.</p><p>His father had been right. He hates this. He also has to know it.</p><p>"We had prepared extra seals in case of emergency," Lord Death continues. "One of them used, and still uses, natural chakra, to seal my half of the Eight-Tailed."</p><p>Kid considers that. "You said the Eight-Tailed can manipulate natural chakra."</p><p>"It can," Lord Death confirms. "That is why my chakra, and only mine, serves as the lock to the seal."</p><p>Kid tries to work through the implications of what his father is telling him. "Then your chakra," he says slowly. "It's… woven? Into the natural chakra seal?"</p><p>"Which is itself bound to a physical location."</p><p>"So any sensing I do within the area will have traces of your chakra."</p><p>"Correct."</p><p>But Kid senses something more, something that he is missing. He runs through their conversation.</p><p>
  <em>Bound to a physical location.</em>
</p><p>"Father," Kid says quietly, "What would happen if you left the radius of the seal?"</p><p>Lord Death ignores him, or maybe he just doesn't hear. "Focus on the natural chakra," he says instead. "Call upon the Eight-Tailed, if possible, but do not go to him."</p><p>Focus? How is Kid supposed to <em>focus</em> when he has learned how much more his existence has cost his father?</p><p>"Make your seals," Lord Death says.</p><p>Kid complies, forming the most basic chakra seal with his hands to direct his chakra. The motions automatically soothe his mind, bringing him into that particular state of awareness in which he can sense the presence of those around him.</p><p>He is suddenly aware of how restless Asura is. <em>What's wrong?</em></p><p><em><strong>Your sanctimonious old man is what's wrong,</strong></em> the beast hisses. <em><strong>Eighteen years ago, he ripped me in half.</strong></em></p><p>Kid grimaces. <em>It's my fault.</em></p><p>Asura laughs, a dry rattling in his mind. <em><strong>Brat. Did you tell him to force me into this half-life? Did you crawl out of the womb and demand saving?</strong></em></p><p>
  <strong>
    <em></em>
  </strong>
  <em>More or less. He wouldn't have sacrificed you if I had been stronger.</em>
</p><p>Asura laughs again. <em><strong>Would you tear me in half for a sickly human, too, you brat?</strong></em></p><p>Kid hesitates. <em>Would you agree?</em></p><p><em><strong>I'd rather go to hell.</strong></em> Asura hisses again. <em><strong>Eighteen years I've spent breathing in the stench of that man, unable to get away. Your missions away were the only relief I got.</strong></em></p><p>
  <strong>
    <em></em>
  </strong>
  <em>My missions— You? You were the one who made me so restless, in that year I was kept in the village?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <strong>You couldn't hear me then.</strong>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em></em>
  </strong>
  <em>But could I have felt your anger?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <strong>Fine. Maybe.</strong>
  </em>
</p><p>"Focus on the chakra, Kid."</p><p>Asura clicks wrathfully at Lord Death's voice. Kid, startled out of the conversation, obeys his father.</p><p>He is immediately unsettled by the roiling presence that is inhabiting the space where his father should be. Asura clicks again, and this time Kid hears the hurt and longing and—</p><p>"Kid.<em>"</em></p><p>Kid shudders, opens his eyes. It takes him a surreal second to realize that the golden chakra leaking through his pores is Asura's, bristling like tarantula hairs.</p><p><em>Don't,</em> he tells Asura.</p><p><em><strong>Don't tell me what I can and can't do, brat!</strong></em> the Eight-Tailed snaps, a cacophony of clicking that rages in Kid's mind. <em><strong>He's right there! </strong></em><strong>I'm right there!</strong></p><p>
  <strong>
    <em></em>
  </strong>
  <em>I'm not strong enough to beat him, Asura.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <strong>I am!</strong>
  </em>
</p><p><strong><em></em></strong><em>No.</em> Kid can feel Asura leaning on him, pushing him toward madness. He only just clings to consciousness. <em>Asura, he can use you better than I can.</em></p><p>
  <em>
    <strong>If you give me your body—!</strong>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em></em>
  </strong>
  <em>Please.</em>
</p><p>Asura subsides. The golden chakra slowly, slowly sinks back into Kid's skin.</p><p>Kid looks to his father. Lord Death is watching carefully, looking curiously blank. His hands are braced into a seal that Kid recognizes as a suppressant.</p><p>"He's angry at you," Kid says.</p><p>Lord Death nods slowly. His hands do not leave their position. "Yes," he agrees. "He would be."</p><hr/><p>Their lead on Arachne directs Team Albarn to a man named Giriko Saw, an engineer and inventor with a fondness for knives. He also happens to have a vehement hatred of Tamashi's ninja, which, coupled with a thorough awareness of ninja politics, makes the mission targeting him especially difficult.</p><p>Nakatsukasas rank high on Saw's blacklist. "I told you I'd be stuck on stake-out duty eventually," Tsubaki tells Soul. Captain Albarn, who is notorious even outside of the ninja world, is relegated with her.</p><p>Liz, with her skill in disguises and relative anonymity, spends a few days on a market street near Saw's home as an antique dealer. Soul keeps her company in the form of a plain, but exceptionally balanced, knife. They hook their target within the week; Soul is sold days later over a nice meal at a restaurant, while Captain Albarn and Tsubaki keep watch from the shadows (literally, in Tsubaki's case).</p><p>Saw keeps Soul closer to hand than any other target has, keeping the blade up his sleeve in the day and under his pillow at night. This is great for tracking movement, but terrible for visibility, mobility, and Soul's sense of hygiene. He does catch a glimpse of their previous target, Arachne, but they do not discuss anything Soul can make sense of.</p><p>A week later, Liz secures an invite to Saw's home under the guise of being interested in the man's collection of knives. Soul isn't sure how she manages to keep up with the names and dates that Saw proudly rattles off, let alone how she manages to <em>answer</em>.</p><p>"I don't see the knife I sold you," she comments when the tour comes to a close. "Was it not to your liking after all?"</p><p>"For the price you sold him?" Saw laughs, withdrawing Soul from his sleeve. "I would have demanded a refund. No, this one is special, I know." He smiles at Liz, and suddenly Soul feels cold with dread. "I dunno how you managed it, but there's a live one in here, isn't there?"</p><p>Liz straightens with surprise. "Wh-what?"</p><p>Saw whistles. A ring of guards approaches and surrounds them. "At first, I thought you had the thing bugged," Saw says, waggling Soul. "Typical sneaky ninja stuff. Then I realized that this is a <em>person</em>. You've trapped some poor fool in this knife, and now you want to arrest me for the purchase and possession of illegal ninjutsu."</p><p>"I-I don't understand," Liz says. Her wide eyes and trembling voice tell Soul that she is acting, but only because the Liz he knows locks up in fear instead of babbling.</p><p>Saw's grin widens. "Did you really think I wouldn't recognize a ninja?" he snarls in a tone that belies the stretching of his mouth. "Get her, boys."</p><p>The guards close the circle, but not before Liz flings herself at Saw. "Mr. Saw, please!" she shrieks.</p><p>Saw raises Soul. "A fitting end, I think," he says, and stabs.</p><p>Soul drops his transformation, cover be damned— the puff of smoke it generates gives them a moment of blindness and confusion to work with— and careens into Liz, because he refuses to impale his own teammate.</p><p>Liz curses and sets off her own smoke bombs, buying them more time. Then she grunts, an uncharacteristically vulgar noise for the vain Liz Thompson, and Soul knows that something bad has happened.</p><p>He has to get them out. Does Tsubaki know that things are going wrong? Liz is usually the one who coordinates stuff like this; Soul can hardly be expected to know anything when he's spending most of his time being an inanimate object. Still, he knows that Giriko's display hall is too bright for her to intervene, with the many lights eliminating any useful shadows.</p><p>He finds Liz's elbow in the smoke and pulls. Her pained cry confirms that she's been hurt. What if she can't run? He pats at her, assessing where her limbs are, and pulls her into his arms. There's no resistance, so at least she hasn't been grabbed, and with any luck, nobody's figured out that he's there.</p><p>Now what? They're in an open hall; if Soul leaves the smokescreen on the floor, he'll be spotted immediately. His only hope of escaping unseen is to take a direction that civilians (and, for that matter, most ninja) wouldn't expect: up.</p><p>High, high above them, wide wooden beams criss-cross the ceiling. He can make the jump, at least in theory: Captain Albarn had explained the idea of it back in his first year as a genin, and Kid had helped him practice on trees. Back then, Soul had struggled to gather enough chakra, but even with his stores depleted from days of maintaining a knife form, he shouldn't have a problem now.</p><p>He overshoots a little bit and stumbles on the landing. The jump had cleared the smokescreen and cracked the floor tiles, but he would have been too fast to spot on the ascent, and the force of his jump had sent the security guards sprawling anyway.</p><p>Saw is cursing violently as he picks himself off the floor. Soul doesn't have time to listen: he checks on Liz and finds her clutching at a knife in her shoulder, breathing ragged and face pale, even under her make-up. Her light hair is pulled into a flat bun and plastered to her head with a hairnet.</p><p>"My wig," she hisses.</p><p>Soul lifts a brow. "What about your <em>shoulder</em>?" he hisses back.</p><p>Liz shakes her head. "If they catch us now—"</p><p>"They won't," Soul promises. "Is it just the shoulder?"</p><p>"'Just the shoulder,'" Liz echoes scathingly. "Next time, <em>you</em> can get stabbed in the shoulder and tell me it's just a shoulder!"</p><p>"I didn't say it was a <em>light</em> wound," Soul snaps. "Is it only your shoulder that got hit, or is there another injury we need to worry about?"</p><p>"Oh, yeah, I'm just ignoring the knife in my thigh," Liz drawls, dry as dust. Soul checks anyway. "There is no knife in my thigh, idiot! I'd be passed out if there were!"</p><p>"<em>Shut up!</em>" Saw roars from below, and the chaos dies to an uneasy silence. Soul and Liz stop bickering, too, freshly aware that they're still far from safe. "Nobody leaves this room! For all I know, they could've switched places with one of you!"</p><p>The man rages on. Soul exchanges a look with Liz, lowers her onto the beam, and settles in to wait for rescue.</p><hr/><p>Team Stein has accepted a steady influx of missions since Kid's return, but all of them have been confined to the village border, within Lord Death's range of influence. Part of Kid is frustrated at this renewed restriction; the rest of him is all too happy to be home.</p><p>Eventually, they are sent out in a group effort with Team Barrett. Kid is pretty sure that Kilik Rung is the sole reason for this pairing, as Kilik is the only jounin-level ninja of their Academy class. As with the limited assignments, Kid feels torn: he doesn't like the feeling of not being the top of his class, but he is relieved at the idea that if he <em>is </em>promoted, he'll have earned it.</p><p>He does wish that Kilik and Kimial Diehl weren't on the same team, and that Ox Ford would help pry Diehl off of Kid instead of being stoically jealous. </p><p>Their objective is to break up a rather large gathering of bandits. Unfortunately for the Shinugakure ninja, the bandits have some rogue ninja of their own, including one who catches Black Star in a genjutsu. Kid only notices when he detects surging chakra, first Maka's, then Star's.</p><p>They really do fight well together, Kid thinks as he makes his way toward them, effortlessly dodging the bandits trying to tackle him. (Senjutsu has sharpened his senses; he barely has to look to know where attacks are coming from. He still uses his eyes to track enemy movement, but it feels redundant.) He arrives just as Star narrowly takes out a ninja trying to sneak up on Maka. It's a close enough call that Kid lifts them out of the fight via a fast-rising platform of sand.</p><p>"One of these days," he sighs, landing on a second platform beside them, "I won't be around, and you're going to get yourselves killed."</p><p>"You got kidnapped," Star points out. "We had it handled, then and now."</p><p>"Thanks anyway," Maka adds, elbowing Star. He pulls a face at her.</p><p>They are <em>so in love</em>. Kid makes a noise of disgust and drops them back into the fight, where they promptly land on the bandits menacing Ox Ford and take out another two.</p><p>He doesn't expect the resolution that comes in the aftermath, in the silence of the counting of the dead. Captain Barrett is dictating clean-up; Diehl helps, quieter than Kid has ever seen her. Kid, having used his sand to arrange the bodies for identification, now stands watching from one side. He is the only of his teammates still on his feet: after all this time, his body is finally adjusting to his vast stores of chakra. Or maybe Asura is just more open to sharing now.</p><p>"I like you."</p><p>Kid turns and stares down at Maka, who is leaning tiredly against Black Star. Their foreheads are pressed together, and her attention is fully on Black Star, leaving no room for misunderstanding.</p><p>Kid barely dares to hope.</p><p>Black Star's chakra crackles to life. "<em>Release</em>," he hisses.</p><p>Kid wants to strangle him. Judging from Maka's glare, so does she.</p><p>Black Star only sighs. "This is gonna be so awkward," he says gloomily.</p><p>"Was that a genjutsu release?" Maka demands.</p><p>"Sure," the idiot says. "Fat lot of good it did."</p><p>Kid stares in blank shock at his two teammates. Really? Maka has finally confessed, and Black Star is going to… Actually, he has no idea what Black Star is doing, other than ruining the moment. If Maka actually gives up because of this, Kid will never forgive him.</p><p>"I gotta say," Black Star is saying, "this isn't a bad genjutsu to be stuck in."</p><p>Maka seizes him by the collar of his regulation jacket before Kid can. "<em>This isn't genjutsu, stinkbrain.</em>"</p><p>Black Star blinks at her. "It's not?"</p><p>"What made you think it was?!"</p><p>He fumbles at her grip on his jacket collar, blunt nails scrabbling at the back of Maka's hands. "Uh, maybe the fact that you're <em>Maka Albarn</em>? You don't like anyone. You <em>definitely</em> don't like me. And if you did, you wouldn't say it."</p><p>Maka's shriek of rage draws a disapproving look from Ox Ford. "I <em>did</em> say it, and I <em>do</em> like you, and the least you could do is <em>take it seriously</em> instead of joking around like you always do!"</p><p>Captain Stein, who is attending to one of the injured in an effort to keep them alive if not conscious, does not look up from his work. Kid longs to join him, but if he moves, the idiots might notice that he's standing right next to them and stop before they figure out whatever the hell is going on. As is, Kid has his hands pressed to his face, his eyes closed like a prayer. Black Star jokes, yes, but never about his feelings for Maka. It takes every ounce of his restraint to not interrupt.</p><p>"You like me?" Black Star is as quiet as Maka is not. Kid hears reverence.</p><p>"Not right now, I do not," Maka snaps, but her voice has lowered and softened from her indignant screech. It's still louder than Black Star's.</p><p>The quiet does not last. "Make up your <em>mind</em>," Black Star complains. "When did you—"</p><p>Kid's restraint snaps. "Forever," he interrupts.</p><p>"Shut up, Kid," Black Star says impatiently, as if Kid hasn't been trying to tell him this for five years.</p><p>"I will not," Kid tells him. "You two have been pining for each other forever. It's been sickening."</p><p>"You're one to talk," Black Star snaps, and Kid gives up and walks away. If by the end of the day they are not together, Kid is going to seal them in a sand bubble until they <em>are</em>.</p><hr/><p>"Miz Mira?"</p><p>Mira Naigus looks up at Soul, her eyes pale in her dark face. Her expression is unreadable under the white surgeon's mask that conceals the lower half of her face. "Yes, Soul?"</p><p>He tries to steady his nerves and fails. "Y-you're a medic, right?"</p><p>Stupid. He'd already known that, and she knows he knows, too. She nods anyway.</p><p>It takes Soul a moment to spit out his next words. In the end, he gives up on trying to find an excuse and just blurts, "Can you teach me?"</p><p>Mira watches him for a silent beat, and then sidles around him. "Azusa is waiting," she says.</p><p>Soul's heart sinks. Of course she wouldn't be interested: he may be apprenticed to her roommate, but that doesn't mean she has to teach him. He'd just… hoped.</p><p>Liz's wound wasn't too terrible by itself, but she is still in the hospital for physical therapy. They're lucky she wasn't more hurt: they'd had to wait hours for Tsubaki and Captain Albarn to rescue them. Soul keeps hearing that grunt of pain, keeps feeling horribly helpless. He never wants to feel that again.</p><p>He'll just have to hope that everything Miz Azusa teaches him will be enough. Maybe he'll ask Kid to lend him some medical textbooks, if he can track his old friend down in between a mission.</p><p>"Soul wants to learn medical ninjutsu," Mira says, breaking Soul out of his thoughts.</p><p>Miz Azusa is sat cross-legged on the floor, meditating. Soul hasn't yet been able to split his attention between meditation and conversation, though he has been getting faster at replacing the chakra seal at the end of his sessions. He still lingers over it, though: he's never forgotten Miz Azusa's first warning that carelessly contained chakra can easily explode and kill him.</p><p>"If he can manage the workload, I see no problem," Miz Azusa replies. "This is about your teammate, I presume?"</p><p>Soul nods before remembering belatedly that Azusa's eyes are still closed. "Yes, ma'am. We all carry basic first aid kits, but it was the first time we'd been trapped for as long as we were, away from help."</p><p>Miz Azusa nods. "You and Mira can work out a schedule after the lesson. We must begin."</p><p>The next hour is as draining as always. He and Mira negotiate a schedule afterwards, though it feels more like Mira assessing when Soul will be fit enough for another lesson. They settle on meeting again in four days, to give Soul the most time to recover between sessions with Azusa and with Mira.</p><p>As he heads home, he wonders if Kid is back from Team Stein's latest mission, the group mission with Team Barrett. Liz is usually the one who keeps in touch with their classmates, and she's preoccupied. Maybe he'll ask Captain Albarn tomorrow during their weekly cooking lesson; Spirit is close enough to Captain Stein that Soul is reasonably sure he will know.</p><p>He catches himself heading toward the Evans compound and forces himself to change directions. He has a flat now, near the market street that runs down the center of the village. It's still nearly empty: he's only had time to pick up a coffee table and a bed, and most of his things are still in his old quarters at the Evans compound. He'll drop by tomorrow and resume the process of packing his things, but for today he just wants to rest.</p><p>He unlocks his door with a tiny key and steps inside. Then he just stares at the inside of his flat. <em>His</em> flat. He'd bought a flat.</p><p>He leaves his boots in the <em>genkan</em> and staggers into the bathroom for a nice, hot soak.</p><p>He's towelling his hair dry when there's a knock at the door, and he has to scramble for clothes. He's surprised to see Tsubaki when he finally opens the door— usually they plan their meet-ups during training sessions— and even more surprised to see Wes.</p><p>"Happy birthday!" Wes says, beaming, as Soul stares slack-jawed at both of them.</p><p>"May we come in, Soul?" Tsubaki asks, polite as ever. She carries a baking tray stacked with definitely non-baked goods, only two of which look like food.</p><p>Soul steps to one side to let them in. "What's happening?" he finally asks.</p><p>Wes gives him a pitying look. "It's your birthday, Soul," he says, grinning. Soul notices, belatedly, what looks like a sack of potatoes in one hand.</p><p>Tsubaki hands Soul her baking tray of not-necessarily-baked goods before unstrapping her shoes. "Liz planned this first," she says, "but since she's stuck in the hospital, I thought I could take over."</p><p>"She didn't invite anyone else, did she?" Soul asks, exhausted at just the thought. He's not opposed to a birthday party, but he'd been hoping for a quiet night, and Liz's parties tend toward being a lot.</p><p>"She didn't get the chance to," Tsubaki replies, grinning. "I figured you'd rather just spend it quietly." She gestures at the tray. "I did ask our class to get you presents, though."</p><p>Soul swallows and nods, suddenly overwhelmed. "Thanks," he croaks.</p><p>Tsubaki's grin softens. "Of course."</p><p>Soul brings the tray of gifts over to his coffee table. He doesn't even have cushions, he thinks, suddenly embarrassed. He swallows down the bizarre urge to cry and looks up at Wes. "So? Who invited you?"</p><p>Wes dumps the potato sack on the coffee table next to the other presents. "I did," he declares. "I was going to let myself in, to be honest. You left the key with a <em>servant</em> instead of with me. I'm hurt."</p><p>"You got the key, though, didn't you?" Soul retorts.</p><p>"So I'm not allowed to miss my own brother?" Wes pouts, then sighs. "I have to run soon. I just wanted to drop these off." He opens the drawstring, revealing Soul's favorite fruit. "You'll be happy to know the pomegranates came through. The farmer was pretty excited to have been recommended."</p><p>Soul gapes at them.</p><p>"Happy birthday?" Wes says. He sounds oddly nervous.</p><p>Soul throws his arms around him and tucks his head into Wes's shoulder. Wes laughs and hugs him back. They're not as tight or fierce as they once were, but Soul doesn't mind anymore. They don't need to be protective to be just as good as he remembers.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Age: 19. Rank: S.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Chapter warnings: Character death, ambient loss of life, parallels to natural disasters.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Kid is meditating on the northern rim of the canyon when his father dies.</p><p>The first sign that something is wrong is the sudden roiling in the natural chakra, a force so strong that it lifts Kid to his feet before he consciously knows what's happening. It's as he is standing that he notices the absence of his father's chakra, can feel the natural chakra around Shinugakure unbending, free for the first time in almost twenty years.</p><p>Asura's fierce joy is pounding through his bloodstream, whispering or screaming <em><strong>finally finally finally</strong></em>. </p><p>He looks for Maka and Black Star first. They're the most familiar with his chakra, and Black Star in particular is especially resistant to the heavy weight of his soul. He'd look for Captain Stein, too, but the man was sent on a solo mission last week and hasn't returned yet.</p><p>The ground rumbles as he runs, the crumbling of a seal as old as Kid himself.</p><p>He finds his teammates swiftly, standing atop the Academy, the tallest building by the training grounds. They aren't alone: another half-dozen or so ninja stand with them, all genin except for one team captain. The genin are whispering, staring at Gallows Mansion and the cloud of dust that has consumed it. Maka, Black Star, and the team captain are deep in discussion.</p><p>Kid interrupts to speak to Maka and Black Star. "We need to go."</p><p>They exchange a brief glance before following.</p><p>"Lord Death is dead," Kid tells them as they approach. "The sandstorm is the manifestation of his half of the Eight-Tailed Beast."</p><p>Maka smacks her head. "That's what I was missing! I knew you had the Eight-Tailed, and I knew Lord Death had it before, but I couldn't figure out how he was still <em>alive</em>, because all of the records say that Beast Hosts die when the seal on their Beast is broken and the Beast extracted." She sends him a worried look. "How is your half of the Eight-Tailed holding up? It wants to be whole, doesn't it?"</p><p>"He's happy," Kid says through gritted teeth. "He's <em>very</em> happy."</p><p>They are standing in front of Gallows Mansion, now, on the other side of the seal that is keeping the sandstorm contained. Kid can feel the seal decaying as they speak.</p><p>"All that was in Lord Death?" Black Star asks, staring up at the raging storm. "Your old man was really strong, wasn't he?"</p><p>"The strongest ninja in the village," says Kid. He swallows the lump in his throat. "Even after passing half of it to me."</p><p>Maka puts a hand on his shoulder. "He's not dead," she says firmly. "The Beast would have protected him, like it protects you."</p><p>Kid laughs. "No, it wouldn't. He's dead, Maka. I can feel it." He inhales. He knows what he needs to do. "I'll need your help," he says to both his teammates.</p><p>Black Star cracks his knuckles. "No problem."</p><p>"We're not fighting it," Kid says. "I'm going to talk to him. The Eight-Tailed."</p><p>"You're going to talk to a <em>sandstorm</em>?" Black Star asks.</p><p>"I'm going to talk to a sandstorm," Kid agrees. "Maka, I know it's a long shot, but can you reinforce the seals?"</p><p>Maka bites her lip. "Not without seeing them," she says, staring into the storm with her <em>Juuji-sen</em> activated. "Maybe if I'd been here when it started, or if there had been ninja to reinforce them— no. It won't hold." She turns her eyes on Kid. "We need to evacuate."</p><p>"I'll talk to him," Kid says. "I can stop him."</p><p>"Before or after it breaks the seal?" Maka demands. "Before or after it tears the entire <em>canyon</em> apart? Kid, your house is already in <em>ruins</em>."</p><p>Maka has always been the only person to ever be angry in front of him, but this is the first time she's been so angry <em>at</em> him. Kid loses his words; by the time he finds them, Maka is talking again.</p><p>"That's what I thought," she says, glaring back up at the raging storm. "I'm going back to the Academy, back to Captain Hoshi. We'll organize the evacuation."</p><p>Kid nods. "Use the bunkers, up on the northern rim," he advises. "They have passages that go to the top of the canyon if the bottom gets blocked off, so you won't be trapped."</p><p>Maka salutes as she turns away. Black Star watches her leave, but for once, he doesn't follow immediately. "You said you needed help," he says to Kid. "What are you thinking?"</p><p>Kid inhales. "I'm going to become the eye of the storm," he says. "I'll have to, if I want him to listen to me. I want you to keep me contained."</p><p>Black Star is silent.</p><p>"It'll be difficult," Kid says. "I'll be holding back as much as I can, but…."</p><p>Black Star nods. "It'll be like Chuunin Exams again, won't it?" he asks solemnly. He snorts suddenly and adds, "We've gotten a lot stronger, haven't we?"</p><p>Kid grins back, one last burst of amusement. "Yeah." He inhales carefully. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I wish Captain Stein were here."</p><p>"I can handle you," Black Star says.</p><p>Kid nods. "You'd better."</p>
<hr/><p>The seventh Tamashikage of the village of Shinugakure is assassinated around noon on a Friday, when Soul is out getting groceries after a training session and lunch with Tsubaki and Liz. He feels the rumble in the earth, of course, but he doesn't think much of it until the civilians in the market start panicking. He still drops by his flat to put away his food before he starts looking for his teammates. He doesn't yet realize the magnitude of the situation, and he doesn't find out about Lord Death until after the crisis is over.</p><p>A chakra message finds him in his house as he is attempting to stuff his groceries into his refrigerator without breaking or crushing anything. The blob of chakra wriggles in through the crack at the bottom of his front door and then bounces directly onto his face, where it clings like a flying squirrel. <em>Emergency</em>, it chatters in Kimial Diehl's voice. <em>Evacuate.</em></p><p>When Soul thinks back, he won't remember exactly what came next. He remembers a debriefing with Maka Albarn, who explained that a chakra seal was in danger of exploding, which sounded like a crisis but not an emergency until she said it had the potential to wipe out the entire village.</p><p>The weather goes from clear to sandstorm soon after— part of the seal breaking, he would find out later. He is taken to the bunkers in the northern canyon wall, which he must have learned about at some point, either through history tutors or in the Academy, but has never actually visited. They are relics of the war with Mahou, back when Shinugakure had more active concerns of a potential invasion. This is the first time they have ever been used.</p><p>Mira meets him there, and they spend the next long hours tending to injuries alongside a small and increasingly outnumbered regiment of hospital staff. Their first patients suffer from mild cases of sandburn, skin reddened and raw from the storm; but as time wears on, each injury seems worse than the last. More and more wounded pour in, civilian and ninja alike. Mira tries to keep him from the worst, but they are overwhelmed.</p><p>Soul tries to count the bodies. There is a hollow pit in his chest that is not quite mourning but could be if he dwelled on it too long. He doesn't have time for that, not with so much work to do.</p><p>He feels more than ever the limits of his powers. He can't even keep track of the dead, let alone his patients.</p><p>Eventually, Mira stops him. "Your control is shaky," she says as he is moving between patients. "Take a break."</p><p>Soul tries to shake her off. If he stops concentrating on his chakra now, he's not sure he'll get his focus back. "I'm fine."</p><p>"You're going to explode, Soul," Mira replies. She puts her hands over his and disrupts his chakra. The sensation is not painful, but it is still uncomfortable, like being folded into a box against his will. "You need to rest."</p><p>"I can't," Soul snaps, jerking his hands away from her. "If I can help—"</p><p>"Soul," says Mira. "You are the only one who hasn't taken a shift to sleep, and it's been over twelve hours since this began. <em>Take a break.</em>" She puts a hand on his back and ushers him out of the rudimentary medical ward.</p>
<hr/><p>Kid wonders, afterwards, about emergency protocols. He wonders how the village was caught so unprepared for disaster, how so few experienced ninja had been in reserve, how so many jounin had been absent.</p><p>He doesn't have the luxury of foresight now. Asura is still claiming victory even as Kid struggles to center himself, to secure his own mind before reaching out to the other half of an ancient and powerful Beast. He has to make this right.</p><p>The pressure to perform is an old and familiar one, though he hasn't felt its likeness in a long time. Black Star's chakra helps steady him, the eager crackling a reminder that he's no longer alone, that he is doing this as much for himself and his friends as for the entire village now.</p><p>Maybe he'll finally try ramen.</p><p>And then, like falling asleep, he is there.</p><p>Steel bars loom over him, an endless disruption in an endless desert of sand. Unlike before, however, there is a beast on his side as well as on the other.</p><p><em>"<strong>You</strong>,"</em> the Eight-Tailed rasps, pedipalps rustling. It rises on its back four legs, towering over him, all rage and fury that leaves Kid gasping for air.</p><p><em>"Us,"</em> the Eight-Tailed corrects. He, too, is on his back legs, a menacing display from the other side of the bars.</p><p>They look identical but for their eyes: three on the tarantula on the other side of the bars, and five on the one on Kid's. He can feel the difference in their chakra, too: one purely Beast, the other still tangled in remnants of natural chakra and Lord Death's own seals, as if trapped in an ironic web.</p><p><em>"He's tamed you,"</em> the Eight-Tailed sneers. One of the tangling threads of chakra snaps.</p><p><em>"Us,"</em> the Eight-Tailed repeats.</p><p><em>"His father <strong>split us in half</strong>, and you want to stay with him,"</em> the Eight-Tailed declares scornfully, wretchedly.</p><p>
  <em>"I won't survive if you kill him."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"But I will."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"And fight off the humans, too?"</em>
</p><p>The Eight-Tailed laughs, a rustling sound that crawls down Kid's spine like spiders. <em>"Let them come."</em></p><p>Kid pulls himself to his feet. He has to lean on one of the steel bars. He's never been so close to them, never realized how massive they were, his palm almost flat against its surface. "I thought you wanted to be one again," he says. "Both of you."</p><p><em>"I want revenge,"</em> says the Eight-Tailed on his side of the bars, the one with five eyes, the one that could eat him alive if it chose.</p><p>"Of course," replies Kid. The words seem to surprise the Eight-Tailed, who lowers until it stands on all of its legs. "I just thought, from speaking with Asura, that being whole again was the priority."</p><p><em>"He knows our name,"</em> hisses the Eight-Tailed, his five eyes blinking agitation.</p><p><em>"He asked, so I gave it,"</em> the Eight-Tailed replies. He, too, has lowered himself to the ground. His three eyes still loom far, far above Kid's head. <em>"Unity is good,"</em> he says to Kid.<em> "Revenge is also good. Both would be best. If you die, we may spend centuries recovering, but we would have revenge and unity."</em></p><p>"Eventually," Kid allows. "But can you really wait that long? It'll take centuries, won't it? Longer, if the humans manage to seal—"</p><p><em>"They will never seal me again,"</em> says the Eight-Tailed Beast on his side of the bars.</p><p>"But if they do," says Kid.</p><p><em>"There is no point to this talk, Kid,"</em> says the Eight-Tailed Beast on the other side of the bars. <em>"The seal cannot be broken without your death."</em></p><p>Kid's hand curls on the bar he is still leaning against. "Yes, it can. We can do it, Asura."</p><p>
  <em>"It'll kill you, little Death."</em>
</p><p>Kid bares his teeth. "No," he says fiercely, "I don't think it will."</p>
<hr/><p>Soul haunts the hospital for the next week. He is not officially one of the staff, but he sneaks naps in deserted waiting rooms in between checking on his erstwhile patients, anyway.</p><p>His brother finds him at the end of the week. The sight of Wes entering the hospital terrifies Soul out of his mind. "Are you hurt?" he demands, hastily accessing his chakra reserves and feeling the seal on his forehead bloom across his face. Wes doesn't look to have suffered outwardly, but— "Is there internal damage?"</p><p>Wes looks worried. "Soul, is that a tattoo?"</p><p>The question is so unexpected that Soul nearly loses control of his chakra seal and has to spend several silent seconds making sure it won't explode. He's been careless: he can feel it pulsing dangerously even when it's tentatively sealed again. He'll have to meditate soon to stabilize it.</p><p>Wes steps closer. "A ninja thing?" he asks quietly. Soul only nods, still half-focused on the seal. "I was wondering how you'd gotten the ink over your eyes."</p><p>"Are you okay?" Soul finally asks again, when he's reasonably certain he won't literally explode.</p><p>"Our clan was able to shelter in the grove," Wes replies. "We had a few injuries, but our nurse was capable enough. Soul, you look exhausted."</p><p>"Why are you here?" Soul asks.</p><p>"A woman by the name of Azusa Yumi dropped by the compound," Wes replies. "She recommended I come pick you up. I think I agree; you look like you haven't slept in days."</p><p>Soul tries to remember when he last saw his mentor. "I must have missed our last session," he mutters to himself. "She should have come here herself. Mira hasn't gone home much, either."</p><p>Wes stares at him. "Soul," he says at last, "please come home."</p><p>Soul stares back. "I moved out of the compound," he says blurrily. "Last year."</p><p>Wes takes him by the elbow and starts pulling him, gently, toward the hospital entrance. Soul wants to resist, but he is so tired, and he's missed his brother. "Just for a few days," says Wes. "You haven't seen the grove since you left, have you? You loved those trees."</p><p>Soul shakes his head. "I should— I need to stay," he says even as he follows Wes's gentle tug. "I have— my patients…."</p><p>"Have doctors," Wes says firmly, though he is smiling. "When did you turn into a doctor?" The smile drops away. "Soul, you haven't been home all week."</p><p>"Didn't want to leave," Soul mumbles. "Didn't want anyone to… be alone."</p><p>"Me, neither," Wes admits. "I don't want you to be alone, either."</p><p>Soul isn't alone, though, not with Wes and Liz and Tsubaki and Azusa and Mira and even Captain Albarn. He's too tired to argue, though, so he gives up and lets Wes cart him away.</p>
<hr/><p>Kid spends a week recovering from the disruption and reapplication of the seal that binds the Eight-Tailed Beast to him. Most of this time is spent asleep in the Albarns' spare bedroom: the hospital is overflowing with the injured, and Gallows Mansion has been decimated, rendering him homeless.</p><p>Maka had offered to let him stay with her and her father; Spirit Albarn had agreed and, when Maka was out visiting Black Star in the hospital, subjected them both to the most awkward, ineffectual, and unnecessary shovel talk Kid has experienced yet. Kid finds this accomplishment particularly impressive, considering how many times Black Star has attempted the same over the years.</p><p>Kid consults Maka afterwards. Maka is suitably mortified.</p><p>"He doesn't know about Black Star," she confesses into her hands.</p><p>"Understandable," Kid agrees. Both Spirit and Black Star have unending wells of energy that only get deeper where Maka is concerned; if they ever get into a fight, it might never end.</p><p>That conversation is one of the only bright spots in the months that follow his father's death. More than once, he is called before the council of elders. It goes roughly the same way every time: they ask him to accept the position of Tamashikage, and Kid turns them down.</p><p>A particularly insistent elder named Excalibur keeps tracking Kid down outside these meetings, usually interrupting Kid in the middle of meditating. "Kid Death," he says like a declaration. "What have you been training for, if not for the death of your father?"</p><p>"I was training," Kid replies coldly, "to attain my father's lost power. If I thought of receiving the title of Tamashikage, I thought in terms of inheritance post-retirement, not as a side-thought following an assassination, and <em>certainly</em> not when I am still <em>nineteen years old</em>."</p><p>"Old enough," Excalibur declares. (Everything is a declaration with this wizened old man.) "You are one of— no! You are <em>the most powerful</em> of our ninja. You have single-handedly subdued the Eight-Tailed itself."</p><p>"I was not alone," Kid snarls. "If not for the efforts of my fellow ninja, we would all be dust. As it happened, we lost too many lives already.</p><p>"I am <em>nineteen</em>. I have barely six years of missions to my name. I am the only of my teammates to not have reached jounin, despite having been a chuunin for the longest, even considering how much of a farce that promotion was."</p><p>"Formalities!" Excalibur declares. "You can receive a promotion when you accept the position."</p><p>"I will <em>earn</em> a promotion on my own time and merit!" Kid roars. Golden chakra seeps from his pores and shapes itself into a crown of eyes over his brow. "I will observe all formalities, Master Excalibur. You can tell the council that I am <em>too young</em>. I will not be made a puppet, not now, not ever. <em>Find someone else.</em>"</p><p>Asura is more present than before, speaking his mind even when Kid isn't actively seeking his opinion. The Eight-Tailed is now half-made of resentment that Lord Death had suppressed without addressing, and Kid has to meditate every day to keep the headache manageable.</p><p><em>"I want to go to the trees,"</em> Asura tells him one day. <em>"Where you used to go to cry, little Death."</em></p><p>Kid watches the beast burrow partway into the sand. The bars are gone; in their place is an endless lace of iron circles, still massive enough for Kid to walk through the holes without stooping, still small enough that the Eight-Tailed Asura could never fit even a single leg through the barrier. He is even bigger than before, and he has all eight eyes now.</p><p>"Why the Evans grove?" Kid asks.</p><p>Eight eyes focus on Kid. <em>"I wish to see it again,"</em> Asura says. <em>"It will be my first time. Lord Death never entered those trees."</em></p><p>"Tomorrow," Kid promises. "I don't think the elders know it exists, so Excalibur shouldn't be able to find me there, either. Maybe we can finally meditate in peace."</p>
<hr/><p>Soul has forgotten how stiffly formal the Evans clan is, how stifling and quiet. His flat had been quiet, too, but the clumsy sounds of his neighbors had made the building feel warmer, more alive.</p><p>The grove, meanwhile, feels like coming home. Soul is reminded of how much he likes the muted softness of green leaves and black-brown earth. As always, the trees are still and calm in a way the rest of his house is not— or they are still and calm, but they are not <em>cold</em>.</p><p>He steps through the trees. They have not been untouched by the recent catastrophe. The outermost trees had borne the brunt of the sandstorm, their bark hanging off in shreds, but they had not saved all of the trees within. Some still lie where they have fallen; others lean against their neighbors, their trunks splintered but not severed; and those that remain are surrounded by lost leaves and even several branches. The deeper he goes, though, the less damage there is. They had sheltered each other and their family.</p><p>He hears Kid before he sees him. It must be on the tail end of a cry, because though Kid is sniffling, he's not wailing the way Soul knows he can.</p><p>He finds Kid sitting in one of the surviving trees, leaning sideways against its trunk as he has so many times before. Soul remembers wondering how he'd gotten up there, the first time he'd found him, before Soul had even gone to the Academy. Now, one effortless climb later, he joins Kid.</p><p>"Crying again?" Soul asks quietly, the way he always does.</p><p>Kid sniffles again. "I don't cry," he lies, the way he always has, but he doesn't wipe at his blotchy face. He just smiles weakly at Soul. "Did you know that there are chakra barriers set around this grove?"</p><p>Soul shakes his head. "Really?"</p><p>"They mostly protect the trees from the weather," Kid says. "I'd always wondered how they grew so well here. The climate doesn't suit them."</p><p>Soul considers that. "I wonder if that's why we kept our arrangement with the Academy," he replies. "Our family never liked ninja much. It was always weird to me that they'd let us run around in here."</p><p>"Do you think your brother knows?"</p><p>Soul nods, slowly. "He said the clan sheltered here. I didn't think about it at the time, but if it weren't for the chakra barrier, all this would be…."</p><p>"Gone, probably." Kid sighs. "I'm glad it's not." He glances at Soul. "I thought you stopped coming here. You have a flat now, right? Or did it get…."</p><p>"It's fine," Soul admits. "It was out of the way. I, um. I was spending a lot of time in the hospital, after, you know. Wes finally dragged me back here to keep an eye on me." He takes a deep, shuddering breath, remembering the week he'd spent in the hospital. The emotions bubble in his chest, throttling him with the need to make sure that everyone is safe, to make sure that they are still alive, or at least to make sure they don't die alone.</p><p>"Soul," Kid whispers. "Breathe."</p><p>His hand settles on Soul's back. Soul focuses on its warmth, drawing himself out of the deep, shuddering fear that had swallowed him. There are wet streaks drying on his face that he doesn't remember shedding tears for.</p><p>"So many people died," Soul whispers. "And then, when Black Star was brought in at the end, after holding you back—" He reaches blindly and fumbles at Kid's vest. "I thought you'd died, Kid."</p><p>Kid wraps his arms around Soul, who clings back. "I'm fine," Kid whispers. "Black Star got the worst of the fight."</p><p>Soul presses his face into Kid's shoulder. "Can we see each other more?" he asks. "I hate— I hate not knowing where to find you. I hate that I just have to— to stumble over you in this stupid grove, when I don't even have <em>time</em> to come here. It's been <em>years</em> since we've talked."</p><p>Kid laughs. "You like the grove."</p><p>Soul laughs, too. "Yeah," he agrees, "I do." He loosens a hand from Kid's jacket to pat at the tree they're still sitting in, a wordless apology. "They don't judge the way people do."</p><p>Kid doesn't reply, but his arms tighten around Soul. "Are you asking me out?" he finally asks. "It sounded like you were asking me out, but you didn't quite say…."</p><p>Soul sits up, pulling away from Kid. "Oh," he says. "I guess I was." He looks at Kid uncertainly and deliberately does not loosen his grip on Kid's jacket.</p><p>Kid nods slowly. "Yes. Let's do it." A sudden thought tugs the corner of his lips into a grin. "I can even move in, if you want. If you don't mind."</p><p>"Oh," Soul repeats. "The mansion was destroyed, right?" He frowns. "Where have you been staying? I know you haven't been in the hospital."</p><p>"The Albarns took me in," Kid explains. "Maka offered. I had nowhere to go, so I accepted."</p><p>Soul hugs him again. "You have somewhere now," he says firmly, reaching for Kid's hand to lace their fingers together.</p><p>"I have somewhere now," Kid repeats, softly, and smiles again.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Age: [REDACTED]. Rank: S+.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Where's Black Star?" Kid asks. It's rare to see Maka without her boyfriend since they moved in together.</p><p>"Papa finally figured out that we're together," Maka says irritably. "I made them promise not to kill each other and left them to it."</p><p>"In Spirit's defense," Kid says, "you <em>did</em> tell him you weren't dating."</p><p>"Why is it <em>my</em> fault that he believed me?" Maka asks. "I was being sarcastic! We were <em>moving in together</em>!"</p><p>"You realize Spirit is going to put him in a genjutsu," says Kid.</p><p>"No, he won't," Maka dismisses. "I made him promise. Also, I blindfolded Star." She frowns. "Maybe I shouldn't have. He definitely needs the practice."</p><p>Soul leans into the hallway from the living room, frowning. "You're <em>that</em> Maka Albarn?" he asks. "I thought you were like, five!"</p><p>In the living room, Liz Thompson bursts into laughter. "Eater, we've known Maka for <em>years</em>! How did you not know her last name?"</p><p>"I knew her last name!" Soul splutters. "I even asked if they were related, back when we first met! She said no! <em>You said no!</em>" he adds to Maka, who is red with embarrassment.</p><p>"You <em>believed </em>her?" Liz is shrieking from the living room. "They have the same bloodline limit! You <em>know</em> they have the same bloodline limit!"</p><p>"I thought Spirit's kid was five!" he repeats, disappearing back into the living room.</p><p>"Are you mad that he didn't know, or are you mad that he's finally found out?" Kid asks Maka.</p><p>"Yes," Maka groans.</p><p>"And— wait, how old is Spirit?" Soul pokes his head into the hall again. "Kid, how old is Spirit?"</p><p>"He's forty now," Kid replies.</p><p>"He's <em>forty</em>? He's <em>older than Wes</em>?"</p><p>Liz howls with laughter. Tsubaki's voice floats over the noise. "You're going to kill her with laughter, Soul."</p><p>"Good! Maybe then she'll let me live!"</p><p>Liz is still laughing when Black Star arrives, a bruise forming on his cheek, his chakra crackling from the fight with Spirit. For once, he is perfectly sympathetic to Soul's prolonged confusion. "Of course you believed Maka," he says. "How can you <em>not</em> believe Maka?"</p><p>"When she directly confesses to you, apparently," Kid says.</p><p>Black Star swells. "That's different! That was the opposite of what she said before!"</p><p>"The opposite of what she'd said about a <em>decade</em> before," Kid replies. "When we were all <em>children</em> and had the romantic inclinations of a rock, except for you, apparently. And I <em>told</em> you so. Repeatedly. For five years."</p><p>Black Star retreats to his girlfriend. "Makaaa," he whines, "Kid is being <em>mean</em>."</p><p>"Kid can be mean all he likes," Maka says. "As a treat." But she tucks her hand into his and leans into him.</p><p>Tsubaki claps her hands. "Since everyone's here," she says, "we can finally pull out the cake!" She disappears into the kitchen that Soul is currently banned from, which Soul resents purely because it is <em>his</em> kitchen.</p><p>He doesn't resent the cake, though, or the way his friends sing happy birthday to him, or the presents that come after and officially un-ban him from the kitchen.</p><p>They all leave early, even Liz, though she has to be dragged away by Tsubaki. Soul's tolerance for crowds isn't much higher than his tolerance for strangers, but he's still sorry to see them go.</p><p>"They could have stayed longer," he tells Kid after they're all gone.</p><p>"You've been eying the pomegranates for the last half-hour," Kid says, wrapping his arms around Soul's shoulders. "We all know when you're ready to hide in a corner for a while."</p><p>Soul leans into him with a sigh. "I'm grateful, but I actually <em>do</em> like spending time with them, even if I spend it watching from a corner."</p><p>"I'll let them know next time, then," Kid murmurs into Soul's hair. He leans forward, grabs a pomegranate, and drops it in Soul's lap. "Happy birthday. Enjoy your fruit."</p><p>Soul chuckles. "Thanks for handling the party."</p><p>"Oh? Am I forgiven for banning you from the kitchen?"</p><p>Soul holds Kid's face in one hand, presses his cheek to the other side, and rubs his stubble into Kid's jaw, ignoring his partner's yelp. "You are now," he says, smirking.</p><p>"You are cruel," Kid groans. "Ungrateful."</p><p>Soul laughs and lets go to nuzzle at Kid's nose. "I love you," he says.</p><p>"Ingrate," Kid repeats, but he's grinning as he pecks Soul's nose. "I love you, too, Soul Evans."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p><strong>Links:</strong> [<a href="https://resbangmod.tumblr.com/">event tumblr</a>] [<a href="https://soundofez.tumblr.com/post/646150921644113920/">heliozi's art</a>] [<a href="https://soundofez.tumblr.com/post/646146572779962368/">tumblr post</a>] [<a href="https://soundofez.tumblr.com/tagged/cry+darling">the tumblr tag</a>]</p></blockquote></div></div>
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